Via Infinito
by Tanta Green
Summary: One a Summoner looking for a reason to live. The other a Crusader looking for a way to forget. Together they could change the world. BeclemxIsaaru yaoi
1. Cloister Zero

**Via Infinito**

**AN/Warning:** Okay; this is going to be long, because I have a lot to explain. Just bare with me. This story was written for the purposes of National Novel Writing Month. It is over 50, 000 words long, and the first draft of it was written entirely in November 2005, as per the rules of the competition. This means that it is going to be long, but the updates should come pretty quickly.

Why Isaaru and Beclem you ask? Because absolutely everything is working against them getting together. Work that one out if you can. I figured Yevon would probably be homophobic too, which is why homosexuality is a crime in this story. I personally don't have anything against it. In fact, it's just the opposite.

If you haven't noticed, then this story will eventually contain yaoi in the form of Isaaru/Beclem and one-sided Beclem/Chappu. It will also contain hints of other pairings, which I'm not going to spoil for you. All I'll say is that there's also mild het and a little bit of suggested yuri. This story also contains attempted suicide, violence, and too much angst, so if any of this disturbs you, I'd recommend you read another story.

This story is based on the 100 per cent complete version, meaning Tidus will be back and Isaaru will be in charge of Bevelle. If there's anything else you may have missed which has relevance to this story, then it will probably be explained. And yes, Beclem and Chappu really were friends. If you got one hundred per cent you would have found this out.

**Disclaimer:** I'll only say this once. I own nothing but Keekah and Dorian once they find their way into the story, and I'm not making any money out of this. Feel free to borrow anything you like; just let me know first.

**Cloister Zero**

Beclem had heard of the phrase 'the calm before the storm' before, but had never experienced one quite as obvious as this.

'The calm.' Those two words caught his attention as they drifted across his mind, and he couldn't help but let out a snort of amusement. 'The Calm'; if only. If there was a true Calm, then he wouldn't have been here, miles away from anything resembling home, sharing a tent with a person that was both his shining light and constant, but unknowing torturer.

Said torturer caught his eye from the opposite bedroll, and gave Beclem a smile that said he knew something was wrong, but also that he wasn't going to bring it up if Beclem didn't want to talk about it.

The entire camp was silent now, as though every soldier that was gathered here was waiting for something disastrous to happen. Everyone was all too aware that barely a stone's throw away from their tents was a handful of captured sinspawn. Sin always came back wherever they were left. Tomorrow, the Crusaders knew, they would be fighting Sin, the entity which was the bane of all Spira.

Beclem didn't want to die leaving so many loose ends behind. There was something he had to know.

"Chappu," he called, alerting the man on the other side of the tent.

"Ya Beclem?" Chappu responded in the thick Besaid Islander accent that always made Beclem smile.

"There's something I need to tell you." Forming the words was harder than Beclem ever thought possible. His mouth felt leaden. Every syllable was a struggle to make his lips and tongue form the right sounds. "Just in case I die tomorrow."

"Don't talk that way!" Chappu interrupted. "You're gonna make it."

"Just in case," Beclem repeated, fixing Chappu with a glare. "I don't want to die with any secrets still left untold."

Chappu sensed that this was important, and moved the short distance across the tent so that he was sitting beside Beclem.

"Please don't," Beclem asked, but Chappu just ignored him and threw a friendly arm around Beclem's shoulders. Beclem had always had a problem with physical contact; a problem which, to the most part, Chappu had completely ignored.

Chappu noticed a droplet making its way down one of Beclem's cheeks. Beclem didn't cry, so whatever this was, it was extremely serious. Chappu removed his arm.

As soon as Chappu's warmth left him, Beclem erupted in a series of short sobs.

"I'm a homosexual," Beclem confessed.

The tent was plunged into an awkward silent. There wasn't even the sound of life outside the tent to break the quiet. It cut like a knife.

"Go ahead. Call for the guards to arrest me if you want," Beclem said, choking back whatever sobs were left in him.

"Why would I do that?" Chappu finally answered, throwing his arm back around Beclem's shoulders. There was a tension there that wasn't before, as though Chappu could no longer relax around his friend. Beclem could tell that Chappu was affected, even though he was trying not to show it.

"It is a crime," Beclem reminded Chappu.

"Ya, but you're my friend," Chappu answered. "Besides, it doesn't really affect me if you think about it. It's not like you're in love with me or anything."

The sorrowful look Beclem gave Chappu said all he needed to say.

"Woah!" Chappu exclaimed. His arm flew away from Beclem's shoulder once more. Beclem knew Chappu didn't realise he had done it, but it still hurt. "I'm flattered, ya, but I got a girl back home."

"That's all right," Beclem said. "I never expected you to return my feelings. This was about as much as I could hope for."

The tent fell silent once more, but this time, it was stuck half-way between a calm silence, and being the setting for a thousand and one thoughts to go flying noisily through the minds of two young men.

"Beclem," Chappu finally broke the silence.

"Yes?"

"I'm gonna give you something," Chappu told him, before sending his friend an unexpectedly jovial wink. "Just in case I die tomorrow."

Chappu leaned over and reached into his backpack then, emerging with a small blue sphere in hand.

"I want you to give this to Wakka, all right?"

Beclem stared at the glowing sphere in his hands for moment. Once again, Chappu was talking about his older brother, Wakka, who, if Chappu was to be believed, was the greatest person in all of Spira.

"I want the two of you to meet each other," Chappu added. "I reckon you'll _really_ like one another."

Beclem didn't miss the innuendo behind Chappu's statement, and smiled because of it.

"And the odds of the great and almighty Wakka being like me are what?"

"Not as small as you'd think, ya?"

Chappu returned to his side of the tent, and settled into his bedroll.

"You can watch it if you want," Chappu told Beclem, who was still staring at the sphere in his hands. "It's nothing special though. Just something I wanted to say to him."

"I'll save it," Beclem answered, tucking the sphere away in his own bag. "Good night Chappu."

"Good night Beclem."

* * *

_One year later…_

Isaaru bowed, trying not to stare at the strange features of the man in front of him. Seymour Guado's shockingly blue hair and striking facial features would stand out in any crowd, but it would not be seen as polite to stare overly long at one of the most powerful people in Spira.

"Lord Seymour," Isaaru greeted the leader of the Guado.

"Lord Isaaru," Seymour returned.

Isaaru stood straight once more, his auburn hair falling back to frame the sides of his face.

"Do you know why I have called you here?" Seymour asked.

"No, my Lord."

"It is about Lady Yuna."

Isaaru froze. The topic of Lady Yuna's apparent treachery was one that he found himself avoiding at all costs. He had met Yuna a few times, and she seemed like an incredibly kind and decent person to Isaaru. If a person such as Yuna found a reason to go against the precepts of Yevon, then she undoubtedly had good reasons for doing so. At least, that's what Isaaru hoped. He was quickly finding that he no longer knew where he stood when it came to issues such as these.

"I want you to take care of her," Seymour continued.

"Take care of her?" Isaaru asked, not wanting to understand what Seymour was asking of him. He didn't know if he would be able to kill someone as inherently nice as Yuna was.

"She has been found guilty of betraying Yevon," Seymour explained. "She is currently in Via Purifico, but knowing the resourcefulness of my wife and her guardians, that probably won't be enough to kill her. The only way to effectively destroy a Summoner is with another Summoner. I will be waiting outside Via Purifico if you fail, but I would prefer if you took care of her as a, shall we say, favour for me."

Seymour let out a light chuckle at the end of his explanation, which sent nervous shudders down Isaaru's spine.

Isaaru contemplated disagreement for a moment, but there was a dangerous glint in Seymour's eyes. If he could so easily kill the woman that he had once proclaimed he loved, there would be nothing to keep him from destroying Isaaru as well.

Isaaru bowed. "It will be done Lord Seymour," he told the Guado.

"Good," Seymour commented, turning his back on Isaaru.

Isaaru took this as his sign to leave.

He frowned as he made his way to the secret entrance to Via Purifico. Was this what he had been reduced to; Seymour Guado's lap dog; to bite when he was told to bite, and nothing else?

He had become a Summoner in order to defeat Sin and make some sort of difference to the world. It would ultimately mean his life, but at least he would die knowing that people would be able to sleep safely in their beds, if only for a little while.

This was not what he had become a Summoner for. As he reached the entrance to Via Purifico, which served as both dungeon and sentence for all who dared to betray Yevon, he silently prayed that Lady Yuna would win this fight.

* * *

Beclem looked down the rows of Crusaders and knew that they were all, in the back of their minds, scared, or at least nervous, despite the fact that the expressions on their faces were all mostly covered by the metal helmet which formed part of the Crusader's uniforms.

He smiled at Chappu, who was standing beside him, bravely facing the ocean from which Sin would emerge. The Besaid Islander smiled back enthusiastically, almost succeeding in fully hiding his fear, unlike some of the other Crusaders, who were obviously nervous wrecks. Beclem honestly couldn't blame them. Not many people had fought against Sin and lived to tell the tale.

Someone down the end of the line screamed out, and sure enough, there on the horizon was Sin, rising out of the water like an island.

Someone barked an order, and the Crusaders moved as one to fire at the entity. The guns did nothing to stop Sin, as the Crusaders had expected, but hopefully, with enough persistence they would be able to gradually wear it down. Volley after volley was fired, but Sin just kept advancing, steadily moving closer and closer to where the Crusaders stood.

Soon a group of several sinspawn were shot out from Sin's bulk. The smaller creatures began attacking the Crusaders as soon as they reached dry land. Even the smallest of the sinspawn were taller than humans, and the Crusaders fell quickly to their vicious and swift attacks.

Beclem found himself paired off against one of the monsters, and drew the two pistols he used for close-range combat. He fired a round straight into the monster, but this only slowed it down for a moment. Chappu jumped in, firing at the sinspawn for long enough for Beclem to reload.

Beclem chose stronger ammunition this time, and the creature fell with a few well-aimed shots. Yet all around him, more and more sinspawn were attacking, and more and more soldiers were dying. Sin was almost on top of them now, and yet it didn't appear to be hurt at all.

"Retreat!" an officer screamed.

Beclem and Chappu nodded briefly at one another and turned as one away from the shoreline. They were surrounded by sinspawn now. They aimed their guns straight ahead at the same time, and continued to shoot as they ran, clearing a path out of the melee.

Suddenly the ground shook beneath them, and a loud rumbling noise began. Sin was attacking.

Beclem and Chappu continued to run as far away from the shoreline as they could, but it was no use.

Beclem glanced over at his friend for just long enough for them to exchange smiles, before something connected with the side of his head, and he knew no more.

Isaaru braced himself as his second aeon fell against Lady Yuna's. Perhaps he was not concentrating as well as he should have been. Perhaps it was in part, deliberate. Or perhaps Yuna was simply far more talented when it came to summoning and controlling her aeons. Whatever the case, Isaaru found that he was loosing, despite the fact that his aeons should have been just as strong as Lady Yuna's.

It was time for him to bring out his last and most powerful aeon; Spathi, a Bahumut. Isaaru had not yet tested the abilities of his newest aeon, but he had heard that it was incredibly powerful.

He concentrated, and felt the spirit of the aeon flow through him.

Soon the sky went dark, and Spathi descended from the ceiling of Via Purifico. It let out a roar that shook the walls of the labyrinth, causing several stones to fall from the roof. Spathi, like all Bahumuts, resembled a great black dragon. It stood on its hind legs, and regarded Yuna with an air that said it would like nothing better than to crush her.

Yuna seemed to contemplate Isaaru's choice for a while, before summoning the half-bird, half-beast aeon known as Valefor. Being a Besaid Islander, Yuna's Valefor was her oldest and most experienced aeon.

Isaaru commanded Spathi to attack, but Yuna's aeon was far faster, and leapt out of the way before Spathi could strike. Valefor countered with a beam of energy that made the Bahumut flinch a little.

Spathi's second attack hit home, but was swiftly followed by another attack from Valefor. Spathi let out an almighty roar of frustration, and attempted to strike Valefor, who once again dodged Spathi's attack.

One more beam of energy had Spathi leaning on one knee, obviously tired and injured. Isaaru commanded Spathi to use a more powerful attack. There was no way Valefor could dodge this, and the bird-like aeon soon collapsed.

Yuna merely frowned, and summoned another aeon. This time it was Ifrit. Isaaru didn't know whether to frown or smile at this choice. His own Ifrit, Grothia, had been his first aeon when he had started out as a Summoner on his island home of Kilika.

Grothia had already been defeated by Yuna. Yuna's Ifrit scowled at Spathi, and threw a fireball at the dragon. A brief flash of anger showed on Spathi's face, before Isaaru's aeon admitted defeat and disappeared into nothingness.

Isaaru knew that now he too had to admit defeat or die. He didn't know anyone who could come up against an aeon and win. He stared into the bright, unforgiving eyes of the creature he usually considered his ally and sighed.

"You win, Lady Yuna," Isaaru said, bowing low before her.

* * *

Beclem opened his eyes, and immediately wished to return to unconsciousness. His head ached like nothing he had ever felt before, and his vision had become slightly blurred. His helmet lay in pieces around him, shattered by whatever piece of debris had knocked him unconscious. There was something sticky on his forehead, and he touched his hand to it, pulling it away to discover blood.

He looked around him, prepared for blood and wreckage, but even still, the scale of destruction was even worse than he had expected. There was no sign of Sin anymore; only sinspawn and human carcasses lay scattered across the length of the shore.

Just beside Beclem lay another Crusader who was not nearly as fortunate as he had been. A machina had been flung into the air by Sin's attack, and had crushed the other Crusader's torso.

Beclem crawled over to the man's side, trying to tell himself that the man's body wasn't familiar to him.

He gently pulled the other Crusader's helmet off, and was sure enough greeted by Chappu's bright red hair and once sparkling eyes. The face that had once smiled so warmly and so often now seemed to have lost all colour and purpose.

Sin was, according to the temples, the punisher of the wicked, and the dealer of death for all those who lived wrongly or against Yevon. Yet Chappu was the kindest person Beclem had ever met. He may not have prayed as often as he should have, and Yevon did say that using machina, as Chappu had so often, was wrong, yet somehow these small transgressions didn't seem like nearly enough that he should face the wrath of Sin, especially when Beclem had been left alive when his own crimes were judged by Spira as being so much worse.

Beclem gently closed Chappu's eyes. The pain from his own injuries didn't seem as great when compared to this new aching hole in his heart. It was so great that he couldn't even find the strength to cry.

Instead, he just screamed, not caring whether or not anyone could hear him.

"WHY!" he shouted at the heavens. He didn't know who he was screaming at; Sin, Yevon, the whole world perhaps?

"What did he do that was so wrong? Was forgiving me such a great crime? If you had to punish someone you should have punished me! Not this; not him! How dare you? How could you?"

He broke off in one long, loud cry that echoed across the wreckage covered ground.

* * *

"Thank you," Isaaru whispered as he watched Lady Yuna walk away.

The guilt of having Yuna's blood on his hands would have been far too much for Isaaru to bear. He was just glad that his two younger brothers were not with him to witness this. One summoner fighting against another; what was Yevon coming to?

Isaaru felt as though the ground was swiftly falling away beneath his feet. His whole life he had believed in the teachings of Yevon, had believed that they stood for all that was good and right, and that one day someone, maybe himself, would defeat Sin.

But why should he believe in something that said that Yuna was a traitor, even though she was doing everything in her power to defeat Sin and bring a new Calm when it would ultimately cost Yuna her life?

And if he couldn't believe in Yevon, what could he believe in? Himself? Unlikely. He couldn't even trust himself to choose which path was right and which was wrong.

Should he disobey Yevon's wish, as Yuna had, and continue on his pilgrimage no matter what Yevon said, or resign himself to a fate in which he served Seymour and the other leaders of Yevon?

For once in his life, Isaaru wished that someone would tell him which path was the right one; not Yevon, not Seymour, and not his younger brothers, who would only choose whichever path they thought would be kindest to Isaaru. The easy path was not what Isaaru wanted.

What Isaaru wanted was… He didn't know what he wanted anymore. There was a time when he had just wanted to make a difference, but in ten years time, when his Calm had faded away, what difference was that really? A few lives would be more peaceful for a while, but then Sin would only come back.

Isaaru found that he wanted to scream; to release all the inner turmoil he had been suppressing since the beginning of his pilgrimage. Down here, in Via Purifico, no-one could hear you scream. It was the perfect place.

He screamed, and screamed, and even though he wasn't sure why it was he was screaming, he continued, releasing all the frustration and doubt that he had kept bottled up inside for so long.

It echoed through the winding paths of Via Purifico and back to his ears. It was the most beautiful sound he had ever heard.

* * *

And somehow, across time and space, as a Summoner and Crusader both screamed at the world that had betrayed them, something connected… 


	2. Cloister One

**Cloister One**

_Year two of the Eternal Calm; three years after the death of Chappu…_

Beclem steadied his breathing, and moved both hands down very slowly to draw his pistols from their resting place on his belt. He took one step, placing his foot on the sandy ground beneath, and then, very carefully and deliberately, placed the other foot just in front.

The falling of his feet made no sound. Each movement was precise. It needed to be; one mistake could mean death in the Gunner's Gauntlet. If the fiends knew he was there before he was ready then they would charge, catching Beclem unguarded. Timing was crucial.

Despite the high level of danger involved, he found he was looking forward to this. It was the perfect way to vent some frustration, the main cause of which was Chappu's oh-so-legendary brother Wakka.

Chappu's older brother was nothing like Beclem had expected him to be, and in Beclem's eyes would never live up to the Wakka in Chappu's tales. Beclem couldn't bring himself to tell Wakka that he had known Chappu either. In fact, the only person that knew, apart from a handful of other ex-Crusaders, was the high Summoner Lady Yuna, with whom Beclem had formed a rivalry and uneasy friendship.

His old friendship with Chappu had been revealed to the woman through a careless comment during a conversation over commsphere waves. Beclem had a feeling the woman now felt that he was hiding more emotion than anyone had previously suspected he possessed. Yuna would have been right.

Wakka was kind enough; perhaps too kind at times, but he lacked Chappu's bravery, and Chappu's wit, and that special something Chappu had that made a room seem to brighten as soon as he walked in.

No, Wakka was definitely no hero, and any hope Chappu may have had that Beclem and his brother would become friends or more was completely unfounded.

Beclem still hadn't given Wakka the sphere either. It remained with the rest of his belongings back in his tent. Soon he would be leaving Besaid to return to the Youth League headquarters, and he still hadn't decided whether or not he should give the sphere to Wakka, despite his promise to Chappu. For a while he had selfishly contemplated keeping it for himself. It had already been watched more times than he could count, and was pulled out whenever Beclem was at his lowest, when he would remember all that he had lost, and sometimes reach out in an attempt to touch Chappu's face just one last time, despite the impossibility of doing so.

What hurt the most was that Chappu's beloved fiancée Lulu was about to have a child to the brother he used to idolise. The whole ordeal had turned Wakka into a nervous wreck. All other thoughts and priorities had been pushed aside in Wakka's mind to make room for the child.

Lulu was in labour right now. Beclem could not bring himself to help the happy couple, so instead he found himself fighting, as he so often did these days.

He charged into the labyrinth of fiends, ready to cause some destruction.

* * *

Isaaru lay back on the rocky ground of Zanarkand, shoving a monkey aside as he did so. The damn things were multiplying at a ridiculous rate these days; causing the tourist business he had started with an Al Bhed named Cid to go bankrupt. No-one wanted to go to a location in which all their Gil would be stolen by flea-ridden pests, no matter how historically important it was.

It was yet another thing to add to his long line of failures, Isaaru thought. Now, once again, he found himself wondering what he was supposed to do with the rest of his life.

He had contemplated staying in Zanarkand to make up for the destruction that had been caused to the famous ruins from the tourist venture. He could stop other people from destroying the site.

Yet what was there here to protect but memories and old broken buildings? Besides, the monkeys would discourage anyone from staying for too long.

"I wonder what I'm supposed to be protecting," Isaaru said to the night sky.

Memories of his time in Zanarkand as a Summoner rather than tour-guide flashed across his mind, and he grimaced. He remembered how it had felt when he was told what sacrifice was truly needed to defeat Sin. One of his guardians would have to lay down their life in order to call forth the final aeon. His own life he would gladly give, but he would not sacrifice the life of one of his brothers. It was then he had given up on his pilgrimage.

Yes, just one more failure; just one more time when he had been forced to give up.

A monkey crawled onto his chest, and he shoved it off in annoyance.

What was he supposed to do with himself now that these accursed pests had driven everyone from Zanarkand?

He remembered a conversation he had with Lady Yuna only the day before. Using the commspheres to speak with someone so far away still felt strange to him, and Isaaru thought that maybe it would forever. In fact, that was how his conversation with Yuna had begun.

"_Maroda often laughs at me and says I'm behind the times," he had said about his younger brother._

"_We talked to Maroda using one of these. He's in Bevelle."_

_The news had surprised Isaaru. Then again, Maroda did seem to be travelling all over the place with his work with the Youth League lately. Still Bevelle, home to New Yevon, the Youth Leagues enemies, seemed like a strange place for Maroda to be spending his time._

"_Bevelle? Really?" Isaaru tried not to think of the many bad memories he had associated with the place. "How is Bevelle these days?"_

"_It's not looking too good. They can't find anyone to lead in place of Baralai."_

_Isaaru had heard about the leader of New Yevon's mysterious disappearance. It had apparently caused chaos in the capital._

"_I wouldn't be surprised if they tried to push some of their problems onto you, High Summoner," Isaaru commented. Yuna was known for her ability to take charge and fix problems, whatever that involved._

"_Well, what would they expect me to do?" Yuna protested._

_Yuna couldn't do anything? It had to be a pretty drastic state of affairs if the legendary High Summoner couldn't think of anything._

"_I had no idea things had gotten so bad," Isaaru commented. "Thank you for telling me."_

_With that Yuna had bidden him farewell, and gone off to attend to another one of Spira's many problems._

Maybe, just maybe, he could find his purpose in the chaotic Bevelle. He couldn't just leave Zanarkand unprotected though.

Isaaru got to his feet. He had reached a decision. He hoped that this time it was the right one.

* * *

Beclem's first bullet hit a wolf-like fiend before it had time to react. A few more bullets saw the wolf lying on the floor. This had alerted the other fiends to his presence, and they all began moving towards him at once.

Beclem had just enough time to reload before a large bird moved to swoop him, and he ducked under it, and then began shooting at it from behind. It realised its mistake soon enough, and moved to attack Beclem again at the same time as a strong horned fiend. Beclem pointed one rifle in each direction and scowled. Aiming at two creatures at one was difficult, but if he didn't then they would probably attack him.

He fired both guns in quick succession. The bird soon dropped, but his other gun ran out of bullets, and the horned creature was on top of him before he could reload. He jumped over the creature as it moved to attack him, reloading and turning in midair so that he could fire several bullets into the creature's hide.

It let out an almighty roar, before falling to the ground and transforming into a scattering of pyreflies.

Beclem didn't notice that a short and heavy fiend known as a helm had snuck up on him until it attacked him from behind, slamming into his back with a crunch that Beclem knew would cause him pain tomorrow.

He whirled around and began shooting at the helm's weak spot; it's stomach. The power of the bullets at this range made the helm fall back slightly every time it was shot. Beclem checked around him while the helm was down, and sure enough, discovered that another wolf was making its way towards him.

A few more shots saw both the helm and the wolf turn into nothing more than pyreflies, but a large group of fiends were charging towards Beclem and showing no signs of stopping until they had torn him apart.

Beclem took a few steps back, and reached into his pocket for the rarest and most powerful ammunition he possessed. He took a couple of seconds to reload and then focused on the horned fiend that was closest to him.

He jumped over the fiend before it knew what was happening, and fired his pistol.

An enormous explosion rocked the area, and all the fiends that had surrounded Beclem were no more.

* * *

Zanarkand had never been an entirely safe place. Even now, when it was only ruins and monkeys, the fiends were far too powerful for tourists to wander around by themselves, which was why Isaaru had been needed in the first place.

It had been an easy enough decision to close the main dome of Zanarkand. It would mean that the Chamber of the Fayth, the main reason for Zanarkand's importance as the final destination of Summoners, would be protected from tourists for ever. Closing it by himself however, was easier said than done.

Isaaru suddenly found that his path was blocked by an enormous armoured fiend that had come to be known as an Ironside. It had very few weak points, and could withstand most physical attacks. It was also incredibly strong.

This would not be easy. Isaaru stood fast, and waited for the fiend to make its move.

The Ironside attacked faster than appeared possible for its size, swinging around one enormous leg in an attempt to flatten Isaaru. Isaaru jumped out of the way just in time. He concentrated for a couple of seconds, calling upon his own power and magic to surround himself with a shield against the fiend's attacks.

The Ironside attacked again, and this time Isaaru didn't manage to get completely out of its way, the large limb knocking him to the floor. If it wasn't for Isaaru's shield, he was sure he would have been severely injured.

A third attack soon came, but Isaaru dodged this one, and retaliated, striking the Ironside's large stomach. The fiend growled at him, and began to rock backwards and forwards in preparation, Isaaru knew from experience to attempt to jump on top of him in a body slam that would undoubtedly kill him.

He sprang out of the way, and once more attacked the creature while he had the opportunity, striking it in the back of the head.

The Ironside got to its feet again, and once more attempted to squash Isaaru with one of its limbs, successfully striking him this time. Isaaru forced himself to get back up, even though the pain was excruciating. It felt as though one of his arms had been broken in the attack.

He channelled magic again, using it to partially heal his wounds. He felt the bones in his arms slowly slipping back into place, and breathed a sigh of relief.

The creature growled at Isaaru once again, and moved its two small arms to its chest, pulling apart the outer layer of rock hard skin to reveal soft flesh beneath. Isaaru grinned at this gruesome display. The Ironside was going to attempt to shoot out an enormous burst of energy and destroy the ex-Summoner in one swift blow, but in doing so, it left its soft stomach open to attack.

Isaaru charged at the beast, and struck it twice with his staff in quick succession. The creature let out a deep scream, and fell forward, almost crushing Isaaru beneath its enormous weight.

The Ironside's body evaporated; a handful of pyreflies flying away from where the body used to be. The phenomenon never ceased to amaze Isaaru, and he watched as one of the pyreflies flew up through the ruins and into the night sky.

He shook himself out of his reverie, and walked the rest of the way towards the dome entrance. It would be impossible to make a physical boundary by himself; at least, it would be impossible to make one that would be at all effective, but a magical boundary was well within his talents.

He twirled his staff in front of him a couple of times, and concentrated on letting his magic flow through him and the staff. A few words were muttered under his breath, and soon a glowing blue glyph appeared in the air in front of him.

He reached out, and his hand met with an invisible boundary. That was that job taken care of.

And now, to travel to Bevelle. He hoped that someone nearby would have a chocobo handy, otherwise it was going to be a long walk.

* * *

Beclem wiped some blood off his arm, annoyed because he knew that it could only be his own. Fiends did not bleed. Sure enough, beneath the red liquid was a long, deep gash in his skin. He frowned at this. He knew he could do better. He had been careless enough to be injured, and he hadn't killed nearly as many fiends as he had hoped he would have.

At least it had gotten rid of some of his frustration. At least he no longer felt like killing something. Right now, all he wanted was to wash off this blood, and have a nice long rest before he left for headquarters later that afternoon.

He pulled off the helmet he wore to allow himself some fresh air. The wound on his forehead from the fight that had killed Chappu had left a pale scar just above his eyebrow, but it was only small, especially when compared to the emotional scarring, although he would never admit this to anyone.

He still hadn't cried for Chappu. He had screamed, he had become violent or frustrated, but he found that most of his emotions had become bottled up ever since that day. Chappu's death had been, he reflected, the worst possible punishment Yevon could have found for his transgressions; far worse than his own death would have been.

He didn't know why he had kept Chappu's helmet. Was it simply because he needed a new one after his own had been destroyed, or had he kept it to remember Chappu by? Whatever the reason, the only time he removed it these days was when he slept. No-one else knew of the scar on his forehead.

He placed the helmet back on his head as he approached the village, hiding his features once again. Wakka rushed up to meet him as soon as he entered the village; a wide smile firmly placed on his face. For no more than a second, Beclem was reminded of Chappu, but then he shook the thought away.

"It's a boy ya!" Wakka announced. "I'm a father now, and I've got a little boy!"

So, Lulu had finished giving birth while he had been gone. Beclem smiled; the closest thing he would give Wakka to a congratulations.

"Have you thought of a name for him yet?" Beclem asked.

Wakka looked sheepish for a bit, and Beclem knew that the Besaid Islander still had not thought of a name for his child. He'd been attempting to think of one for a while now apparently, and yet the child had been born and the father still hadn't chosen a name for him.

"I just can't choose you know?" Wakka told Beclem. "What if I give him the wrong name and he doesn't like it?"

"Then he'll just have to learn to live with it," Beclem said, perhaps just a little too bitterly. "Excuse me; I have to finish packing my bags before I leave this afternoon."

He shoved past Wakka and headed towards the tent in which he was staying. He froze for a moment as he caught sight of the sphere Chappu had given to him.

* * *

It was lucky for Isaaru that an airship had happened to be passing Mt. Gagazet just as he had begun to climb it. They had met on a large plateau near the top, and the owners were nice enough to give Isaaru a lift to the capital.

As soon as he exited the airship Isaaru found that he was surrounded by a crowd of priests and citizens, some of whom he recognised, but most of whom he was sure he had never met before.

They all seemed to know who he was though, and before his feet had even touched the floor, he had been offered a temporary leadership at least three times.

"Please Lord Isaaru," a middle-aged priest that had introduced himself as Dorian said. "If you could do anything to help us it would be greatly appreciated. Without our leader Baralai we are completely lost."

"You want me to lead?" Isaaru asked, completely dumbfounded by Bevelle's response.

"You are an ex-Summoner," Dorian answered, as though this were the only quality that was needed in a potential leader.

"Brother!" someone screamed out from the back of the crowd. Isaaru looked over a few dozen heads to discover the older of his two younger brothers, Maroda, waving to him from the back.

"Excuse me," Isaaru said, shoving through the crowd of people.

"Brother!" Maroda said again, capturing Isaaru in an enthusiastic bear hug as soon as he was within range. "It's been far too long! What are you doing here?"

"I heard that there was some trouble here."

"That's an understatement," Maroda laughed. "These people are absolutely desperate for someone to lead them."

"I noticed," Isaaru commented, as one woman tugged at his sleeve.

"Maroda," a voice called from about waist height. "What's going on?"

A child found his way to Maroda's side. The boy's face lit up as soon as he saw Isaaru.

"'Saaru!" he called, wrapping Isaaru in an even tighter hug than Maroda had.

"Hello Pacce," Isaaru greeted his youngest brother. "Have you been behaving yourself?"

"Yeap!" Pacce responded immediately.

"He's started his own group of Sphere Hunters," Maroda elaborated. "They call themselves the Kinderguardians."

"Is that so?" Isaaru asked, ruffling Pacce's hair.

"Yeah, and I've gotta go tell them what to do now, all right?"

Pacce was gone before Isaaru could respond. He could be heard barking orders at the other Kinderguardians within a few seconds.

"All right Kinderguardians! My brother's back in the city, so we've gotta protect it now! Move out!"

"He's a good leader," Isaaru commented with a smile as he watched the youngest of the three brothers walk off, surrounded by a small group of children.

"Lord Isaaru," Dorian said, attempting to catch the ex-Summoner's attention once more. "Will you at least think about leading the rest of us? Everyone would surely listen to any command you were to make."

Isaaru watched his youngest brother run around for a little while as he took a couple of moments to think the question through.

Was this where he would find his purpose? Would he be the right leader for Bevelle? There was only one way to find out.

"I accept your offer," he told Dorian.


	3. Cloister Two

**AN:**Well, I have to admit that not much happens in this chapter, but it is essential if we want to get to the more interesting bits. Argh... why do I bother even saying that? No-one's reading this story anyway... are they?

**Cloister Two**

In Beclem's opinion, one of the nicest things about the Island nation of Besaid was the fresh sea breeze which consistently blew in to cool the rest of the island down. He stood on the beach for a while, simply savouring it for now. Once he returned to Youth League headquarters he would only have the strange combination of damp, dust and oil that seemed to hang around the base as a lingering stench.

The Besaid Aurochs had all gathered on the beach to bid him farewell. Like himself, the Besaid Aurochs were all members of the Youth League, and Beclem's sole reason for being on the island had been to train them as soldiers, but now that the leader of the Youth League, Nooj had disappeared, he had been called back to headquarters in case he was needed more somewhere else, something that was quite a strong possibility at the moment. Spira was going through so many changes.

Wakka and Lulu weren't there though; they were too busy now as parents. He heard a small chattering behind him, and found that Lady Yuna too had come to bid him farewell. He didn't know why she bothered. She travelled around so much that she would undoubtedly see him back at the Youth League headquarters some time or other.

He could hear the ex-Summoner's footsteps behind him as she approached the dock on which he stood and braced himself for what could be a tense conversation.

"Has Wakka settled on a name for his kid?" he asked Yuna before she could even announce her presence.

"No, not yet," she answered, by now used to Beclem's straight-forward way of talking.

His hand automatically travelled to the sphere in his pocket. Wakka still hadn't thought of a name for his child. Beclem still hadn't decided whether or not he should give up one of his last memories of Chappu. Maybe, just maybe though the sphere would inspire Wakka enough.

"Never could make up his mind," Beclem commented, and he began walking closer to the ship that would take him back to youth League headquarters.

Still, doubt nudged at the back of his mind. Hadn't he promised Chappu? His hand tightened around the sphere. Perhaps it was finally time to let this particular memory go.

"I have something here," Beclem told Yuna. "I'd like you to give it to him."

He turned around and placed the sphere in Yuna's hands.

"It's a memory of a war buddy," he explained, knowing Yuna would know who he was talking about. "I'd give it to him myself, but… you understand." He wouldn't be able to explain everything to Wakka now; not after they had managed to create such a gap between them.

"All aboard!" the ship's captain called. "We'll be settin' sail shortly!"

"See he gets it," Beclem told Yuna.

At that moment the ball the Besaid Aurochs had been practising with sailed across the beach to hit Beclem in the back. Whether it was deliberate or an accident, Beclem didn't know. He stared down at the ball, which had come to rest at his feet for a moment.

He had a feeling that the Aurochs didn't know what he was capable of. Maybe they thought he was all bark and no bite. It they did it would be his own fault, he realised. He had never practised with them, or shown them his own skills. Beclem came to the decision that he should leave them something to remember.

He kicked the ball into the air, and jumped up with it, twisting and turning in the air until he was upside down and his foot would just reach the height that the ball would almost come to rest at for a couple of seconds. His foot and the ball connected, and the ball flew across the beach, slamming into the stomach of Keepa, the largest of the Besaid Aurochs, causing him to fall to the ground. Beclem flipped a couple more times in midair, before coming to land perfectly on his feet.

The Besaid Aurochs and Yuna all turned as one to stare at Beclem. It wasn't the best he could do, Beclem thought. If they were all gaping like this then they truly had underestimated him.

"Woah," Keepa exclaimed as he got to his feet.

"Practise harder," Beclem said as he walked off.

"Hey!" Keepa called out, stopping Beclem in his tracks. He turned around to find that the Besaid Aurochs had started to run after him.

"Next time we meet," an Auroch by the name of Jassu said, "let's blitz, ya?"

"Yeah!" the one named Datto added. "Show us that shot again some time!"

Beclem didn't know whether or not to happy about the Besaid Islanders' invitation. It seemed to be an Islander trait to be so fond of the sport of blitzball. Chappu had more than once suggested Beclem try and enter the sport professionally; a suggestion which Beclem almost always ignored. There were better ways to use physical prowess and talent than in sport.

"Slackers to the very end," Beclem commented as he boarded the ship, not even bothering to look back at the people who were enthusiastically waving him farewell.

* * *

Isaaru tried to concentrate, but it was difficult when he had several people asking him radically different questions about three or four different topics at the same time.

"What do you think the Al Bhed's reaction to that would be?" one of the people that seemed to have appointed themselves as Isaaru's advisor asked.

"Are we talking about the persecution of the Guado or our relationship with the Youth League?" Isaaru asked, having lost track of the conversation's direction for what must have been the tenth time that hour.

"The Guado, my Lord," Dorian answered. Isaaru had already established that out of all the Yevonites that surrounded him, Dorian was the most eager to please. Perhaps he was a little too eager. Isaaru could sense a burning ambition beneath the man's kind eyes and reassuring words, and had a feeling that if there was any chance for power, then Dorian would leap at it, no matter what it involved.

"There have been some concerns that the Al Bhed may see our interference in the Guado persecutions as an unfair treatment which they themselves did not receive," Dorian explained.

"Hasn't it always been the way to leave Guado problems to the Guado?" Isaaru asked, wishing that people would stop asking him to make decisions of such importance.

He had never been able to make decisions effectively. Perhaps the decision to lead Bevelle had been a bad one.

"Lord Isaaru," Dorian put in again, while the rest of the Yevonites bickered and talked amongst themselves. "If I may, it seems that people are more concerned with our relationship with the Youth League. Perhaps we should focus our efforts on building a stronger foundation with them."

Isaaru nodded. "That seems like a good idea. Thank you Dorian."

"Lord Isaaru," a woman at the back of the group called. "We still need to commission someone to build the statue of Lady Yuna for the temple."

"For Yevon's sake!" Isaaru exploded; finding this question to be the straw that broke the camel's back. "I can't solve all your problems!"

The room fell silent.

"I need some time to myself for a bit," Isaaru said, confident for the first time that afternoon that the other people in the room were actually listening to him. "If anyone had anything urgent to talk to me about, they can find me in my room. Dorian?"

"Yes, my Lord?"

"I'm sure you're quite capable of sorting out a few of these problems. I'll leave you in charge of determining what our priorities should be for now."

"It will be done my Lord."

Dorian bowed a little too deeply. Isaaru returned a smaller version of the gesture, and walked off in the direction of his rooms.

He felt a little uneasy leaving Dorian in charge of things, but despite his resolve and determination to fix Bevelle's problems, all he wanted right now was some peace and quiet.

Perhaps it was just something that lingered in the air in Bevelle, but Isaaru found himself suddenly in the grip of a strange, unexplainable melancholia.

* * *

The headquarters of the Youth League were currently the closest thing Beclem had to a home, but they certainly didn't feel like one. He wasn't sure what home he could really claim, his family home having been destroyed when he was only a child, along with his parents, and any home he had been able to claim since then had only been temporary, like the Youth League headquarters were now.

Still, there had been greetings and welcomes from several people here; those people that were the closest thing he had to family, and the room in which he stayed almost had the feeling of home to it.

His life settled into a comfortable routine for the next couple of weeks. There were mountains of paperwork gathering around the Youth League, and it seemed it had fallen to him to take care of it all. It was a safe and completely boring life.

He occasionally found himself wishing that he was back on Besaid Island, but always forced himself to shake that particular thought away. He had, unsurprisingly, seen Yuna once or twice when she dropped by the headquarters. Chappu's sphere seemed to have come in handy, because only a few minutes after Wakka had watched it, he had chosen a name for his son; Vidina.

The choice of name made Beclem smile. It was a name that Chappu would have undoubtedly loved. The tale of Summoner Vidina had always been Chappu's favourite, mainly because he had been named after Vidina's only guardian, also of the name Chappu. Beclem wondered if the choice of name hadn't deliberately been a small sort of tribute to Wakka's younger brother.

One day Beclem would undoubtedly meet the child, but it wasn't a day he was looking forward to. He was afraid that Vidina would have just a little too much of Chappu in him.

The days continued to pass.

* * *

Dorian was quickly proving himself to be as good an ally as Isaaru could have hoped, and also as power-hungry as he had feared. Isaaru allowed this for the time being though, and found that many of Bevelle's problems were lessening.

His own inner demons however, were growing for no reason that he could discover, no matter how much soul searching he did. He wished he could blame it on something, if only the atmosphere in Bevelle, but he couldn't find anything to blame it on apart from himself. The more he thought about it, the more he realised that the only thing it could be was a character flaw.

He had found his purpose, hadn't he? That meant that he should be all smiles and happiness now, and when he was around most people, that's all they saw; smiles and polite happiness. Lord Isaaru smiled; Lord Isaaru must be all right.

Maroda was not fooled though, although Isaaru was fairly sure his brother didn't know exactly how deep his depression was beginning to grow.

"What is it?" Maroda asked one day, seemingly out of the blue. Isaaru realised that his mask must have slipped.

"What do you mean?" he said, making sure a soft smile had returned to his face.

"Something's wrong, and don't pretend it isn't," Maroda said.

"I don't know what you mean," Isaaru said, stubbornly hiding the truth. What could he say? He himself didn't know what was happening inside of him.

With no warning, Maroda grabbed Isaaru's wrist and pushed up the long ceremonial sleeves of his robe to reveal the lower half of his arm. He inspected it for a moment, the look on his face telling everyone that cared to look that he was very serious about this. After a few seconds his inspection seemed to be complete, and he let Isaaru's arm fall back to his side.

"Don't worry," Isaaru said. "I haven't…"

"I know," Maroda said, shaking his head. "I was just checking. You know, the last time had me really scared."

"I know," Isaaru assured his younger brother.

"You're acting like you did back then, is all," Maroda said, trying to explain his actions. "You can't die, all right?"

"Why not?" Isaaru said, before he could stop the words from slipping out his mouth.

"Why not!" Maroda screamed. "These people need you Isaaru! Pacce and I need you! What are we going to do if you die! Think about that, all right?"

"Calm down," Isaaru muttered. "I haven't done anything, so can you stop worrying about me so much."

"Fine," Maroda said, finally letting go of Isaaru's hand. "Just don't all right? If you ever feel like doing it, just don't. You may not have defeated Sin, but you've still got a purpose in life, all right?"

"All right."

* * *

Beclem was beginning to get used to the dull monotony of his life. He would get up in the morning, have breakfast in his small tent, get ready for work, fill out the Youth League's paperwork all day, stopping for an hour's lunch, and then patrol the area for a couple of hours in an effort to get stronger, before having dinner and then retiring for the evening. It was safe; it was boring; it was everything he didn't want in life.

So it was, to say the least, a pleasant surprise when Commander Lucil, the Youth League's current leader entered his office, with her right hand man, or in this case woman, Elma in tow.

"You must be sick of paperwork," Elma, a dark woman the same age as Beclem commented.

"That would be an understatement," Beclem replied.

"Good," Lucil said, flicking a strand of her long red hair back off her shoulder as she spoke. "Because we've got a new assignment for you."

Beclem wished that the two women could see his disinterest, but unfortunately his mask was in the way.

"As you know," Lucil went on to explain. "We're trying to establish stronger ties with New Yevon. Because of this, we've decided to send a representative to Bevelle, to co-ordinate with the leaders of New Yevon, and report back to us on all important events."

"What happened to Maroda?" Beclem asked. "I heard he was sent there on reconnaissance."

Lucil and Elma glanced at one another, silently asking and answering one another's questions in a way only the closest of friends could, before Lucil explained.

"He's apparently neglected his duties as a member of the Youth League and is now captain of the Bevelle guard."

"I heard the new Praetor is his brother," Elma added.

"Lord Isaaru?" Beclem questioned, having heard of the ex-Summoner through his younger brother.

"That's the rumour at least," Lucil answered, shaking her head.

"You want me to go and establish diplomatic relations with an ex-Summoner?" Beclem asked, clearly sceptical.

"We know you don't like Summoners Beclem, but please try and be civil," Lucil said.

"We thought you'd be glad to get out of your office," Elma added.

"Fine," Beclem gave in. "I'll do it, but only because I'm sick of paperwork."

* * *

Isaaru looked out of his balcony at the residents of Bevelle, wondering if any of them felt as lost as he did right at that moment. He walked back inside, and sat down at his desk, trying to ignore the mountains of paperwork that seemed to grow every time he turned away from it.

A glint of silver caught his eye, and he found himself mesmerized by the knife for opening letters that lay on his desk. It called to him, and for a moment he wondered if it would be quite sharp enough to end his pain forever.

He picked it up, and ran one finger along the blade. The tip drew a little blood and he flinched, not expecting it to be quite that sharp. He watched in morbid fascination as a single drop of blood pooled on the end of his finger.

A knock on the door startled Isaaru out of his reverie, and he quickly returned the blade to its place on his desk, wiping the blood away with a handkerchief.

"Come in," he called, just as the handkerchief fell into a rubbish bin under his desk.

Maroda entered; a panicked look on his face.

"Isaaru," he called. "I'm not sure what the hell it is, but Lady Yuna, Pacce and the Kinderguardians have just discovered something in the halls of Bevelle Palace. They're calling it Via Infinito."


	4. Cloister Three

**AN: **Well, another chapter up, and although it's extremely short, a few very important things happen. I hope at least one person apart from me is enjoying this. Please let me know if you are. It would make this story for me.

**Cloister Three**

The gentle motion of the waves rocking the ship had quickly lulled Beclem into a state half way between being asleep and awake. That final, blissful step into oblivion would not come however, and he lay half awake, eyes staring at the ceiling above his hammock, wondering if accepting this mission had been such a good idea. He got along well enough with Maroda, but that was no guarantee that he would like his Summoner brother. He only needed to think of Chappu and Wakka for an example.

He was only as friendly with Maroda as he was with anyone he liked, which wasn't much, and he hadn't talked to him enough to know what to expect from Lord Isaaru. If worst came to worst, he supposed he could always return to Youth League headquarters, and someone else could be the official representative of the Youth League in Bevelle.

When he thought of his position like that it almost sounded impressive Beclem thought with a grin; the Youth League's official representative in Bevelle.

He must have fallen asleep and started dreaming, because the next thing he remembered, the room suddenly became impossibly dark. He could no longer see anything more than a foot away from him. There was a sound, like a quiet growling in the cabin, and a soft rumbling shook the floor beneath him.

There seemed to be something standing in front of him. He blinked a couple of times, trying to turn the shape into something recognisable and less abstract, but it remained just as strange, covered in what could only be called spikes and claws. The shadow moved, making something around it crack. More of its body rose, breaking the wooden deck beneath it to allow room for its enormous and horrific body. It turned around and faced Beclem with two cold glowing yellow eyes.

Something exploded, making Beclem's eyes close tight, then shoot wide open again as he woke up. The remnants of the dream must have still been clouding his memory, because he thought he saw a dark shape move in the corner of the room.

Another explosion rocked the ship, and Beclem reached for his helmet. He thought he saw a hand full of enormous claws out of the corner of his eye, and the next thing he knew; there was a gaping hole in the wall.

There was one final, enormous explosion which tore the ship into pieces, and sent Beclem flying into the water.

* * *

Sleep was also eluding the current leader of New Yevon. Isaaru stood on his balcony, staring out over the city he was supposedly leading. It seemed that Dorian was receiving more and more responsibilities, and Isaaru was sure the man could have led the city if he had never shown up, were it not for the fact that Dorian was neither well-known nor trusted.

Isaaru stared guiltily at a newly formed scar on his wrist and frowned. If Maroda knew what his older brother had been doing he would undoubtedly be mortified. Isaaru had not actually brought a blade to his skin since he was a Summoner, and had felt so frustrated and guilty about his failure to defeat Sin that he had attempted suicide.

Maroda had stopped him then, quite forcefully, and had guarded Isaaru even more closely. For two weeks no sharp objects of any kind were allowed near the Summoner. It had been embarrassing; humiliating even. Then Lady Yuna had defeated Sin, and with time Maroda's watch over him began to lessen and eventually disappear, as the scars on Isaaru's wrist attested.

Isaaru found his thoughts wandering to Lady Yuna and her current quest to discover how far the chambers they had come to call Via Infinito spread, and what their purpose was. Isaaru had done a little exploring himself, and was already shocked and frightened by what he had found. The place was dangerous, and Isaaru was glad Pacce had not journeyed inside the chambers after discovering them.

Isaaru's thoughts were interrupted as a bright glow lit up the horizon. He looked out in the direction of the docks and discovered that where a ship had been coming into the bay only a couple of seconds earlier, there was no more than a glowing fireball now.

He quickly calculated how far out to sea the ship was, and how much damage the explosion had done. There was only a small chance of survival for anyone on board, but it was still a chance. Isaaru grabbed his staff from inside his study, and began running towards the shoreline.

* * *

Beclem spat out a mouthful of salty water as he broke the surface. He looked around and discovered that the ship had been closer to Bevelle's shoreline than he had previously thought. There was barely anything left of the ship except for a few planks of wood here and there. Beclem wondered what could have caused destruction like this, and how and why he had been left alive.

He was reminded of the dark shape from his dream, and for a while he wondered. Of course it had only been a dream, Beclem thought. The ship had suffered from some sort of mechanical problem. It happened all the time, didn't it? It was one of the reasons machina were still distrusted by a lot of people.

There was another rumbling noise then that sounded as though it had come from beneath the water. The water began to churn, and Beclem began to wonder if he was still dreaming. Something slammed into his back, then his legs, covering him in tiny scratches and crushing many of his bones at the same time.

Beclem searched at his side for his guns, and found only one. That was better than nothing at least. He brought it up out of the water, and prayed that the ammunition hadn't been damaged by the water. He ignored the pain that was quickly blossoming all over his body. Pain could wait; he needed to focus on surviving for now.

He wished whatever it was would show itself.

Eventually he gave up, and swam over to the nearest piece of driftwood. He clung there for a while, until he came to the conclusion that the ship's attacker was not coming back.

When he was hit in the back of the head by another attack, he gladly welcomed the oblivion that came with it.

* * *

Isaaru scanned the beach for any signs of life and found none. There was only driftwood to be found, scattered along the sand in small pieces and occasionally covered with seaweed or, in a few cases, blood.

There was a noise coming from the ocean, and Isaaru turned to discover a rather large wave making its way to the shore. Riding it was a rather battered and bruised looking man clinging in his unconscious state to a piece of driftwood.

The body washed onto the sand, and Isaaru could see that he was wearing the uniform of one of the old Crusaders. He ran over, dropping beside the man to check for a pulse. He was glad to find one, but wasn't surprised to find that it was weak. The man had lost a lot of blood and broken many bones.

Isaaru was just about to heal the man when an almighty roar sounded from out at sea. Isaaru turned towards the ocean to discover that an enormous wave was heading towards the beach. It may have just been Isaaru's imagination, but there appeared to be some sort of dark, monstrous shape beneath the wave, directing it towards Isaaru and the man he had found, and increasing the wave's speed and power at the same time.

Isaaru sprang to his feet with his staff in hand. He placed both of his bare feet firmly in front of the injured body, not caring that the waves and sand were lapping at the edges of his elaborate robes. He placed the staff directly in front of him and whispered a few incomprehensible words.

A shield glowed in front of him, surrounding both Isaaru and the injured man. The wave struck, but the water splashed against the shield, curving away from the two men. The wind from the wave whipped Isaaru's hair around his face; his robes flying up off the ground to lap at his feet.

The wind soon disappeared, and the waves washed back into the ocean, leaving no trace that they had been there at all. If anything had been attacking them, then it had given up.

Isaaru let the shield down, and turned his attention back to the injured man.

The very first light of dawn was appearing on the horizon as Isaaru kneeled on the sand and pulled the man into his arms. The man was wearing an old Crusader helmet. Isaaru pulled it off to reveal the man's face.

He was quite handsome, and Isaaru wondered why he would cover up his face with such a mask. He looked to be in his late twenties, around the same age as Isaaru. A pale scar ran down over his left eyebrow, stopping just above his eye. Isaaru traced the scar gently with one finger.

The man's hair was red-brown, but of a deeper, richer tone than Isaaru's, and lay this way and that over the man's forehead and around his ears in a dishevelled way that wasn't completely without charm.

Isaaru gave into the temptation to run his hand through the wet hair, making the man in his arms moan a little and move as though he was about to awaken.

The man's eyelids slid open, revealing a pair of startling green-golden eyes. He blinked a couple of times, trying to focus on Isaaru's face, before smiling incredibly gently.

"Chappu?" he asked weakly, reaching one arm up to try and touch Isaaru's face.

The hand didn't make it though, before it fell back to its owner's side, and the bright golden eyes were closed again, as unconsciousness claimed Beclem once more.


	5. Cloister Four

**Cloister Four**

The first thing Beclem realised when he returned to consciousness was that the splitting headache and various wounds he had received the night before had completely disappeared. The second was that he was in a luxurious room he had never seen before, in a bed that was strangely comfortable.

Fragments of the night before came back to him; the real mixed in with the imagined, and Beclem found he couldn't tell them apart any more than he could the night before.

"Chappu," he murmured, as a blurred face came back to him.

"I'm sorry," a voice that wasn't his own answered. "I don't know who Chappu is, but I am afraid that I am not him."

Beclem looked up to find he was not alone in the room. A tall and, he had to admit, beautiful man stood in the opposite corner of the room. He smiled at Beclem and walked over to kneel at the side of the bed.

"How are you feeling?" he asked Beclem.

"Better than I did before," he said as he reached a hand to his head to find Chappu's helmet was missing.

"Where's my helmet?" he snapped.

"I apologise. I must have left it at the beach."

Beclem didn't reply.

"Look; you're lucky to have survived at all," Beclem's saviour continued, "helmet or no helmet."

"Are you looking for me to say thanks?" Beclem sneered.

"It wouldn't hurt! You are the only one to have survived from all of the passengers and crew that were on board that boat. If I had not shown up when I did, then you probably would be dead as well!"

"Fine," Beclem answered. "What's your name?"

"Isaaru."

"You're Summoner Isaaru? No wonder I already dislike you."

"Excuse me!" Isaaru cried in outrage.

"I'm sorry, my Lord," Beclem replied; more than a trace of sarcasm leaking into his words. "And you have my thanks. My name is Beclem. I'm here as a representative of the Youth League."

"You are the Youth League's representative?" Isaaru asked, a look of worry growing on his face. "Well then, I guess it is appropriate that I brought you to this room then. We had put it aside for the Youth League's visitor, but when your ship was destroyed I figured it would be all right to put the only survivor in here. Who would have guessed that you would be one and the same person?"

"You don't look a thing like Maroda," Beclem observed, giving Isaaru the distinct impression that Beclem hadn't been listening to a word he had said.

"I take after my mother. My two brothers take after our father," Isaaru explained. "I suppose I shouldn't be surprised that you know Maroda. The two of you are both part of the Youth League after all."

Once again Beclem gave no indication that he had been listening, except a snort of derision. At that moment the door opened and Dorian entered without announcing his presence. Isaaru turned towards him and the two began talking about something that Beclem couldn't quite catch.

"What? Now?" Isaaru asked in a voice that was louder than the rest of the conversation had been. "All right. I'll be there in a moment."

He turned around and faced Beclem once more.

"Feel free to show yourself around the city today, but be careful not to overdo yourself. Some of your wounds are not fully healed yet," he told Beclem.

With that Isaaru followed Dorian out the door, leaving Beclem alone in the room, staring up at the ceiling and wondering.

"So that was Lord Isaaru?" he asked himself. "I already don't like him. How am I going to survive living in the same building as him?"

* * *

It was easy enough to find his way to the beach and find Chappu's helmet amongst the wreckage. Some of the people of Bevelle had begun to clean up the ship's wreckage, but there were still scraps of wood and metal scattered over the white sand.

Finding his way back to the Palace proved to be a little more difficult. Beclem wondered if all the time he had spent in smaller colonies like Besaid had weakened his sense of direction in cities.

Before long he had found himself in the heart of the city. It should have been easy, Beclem thought as he made another wrong turn. The Palace was on top of the tallest hill in the area, so all he had to do, if logic was to be believed, was keep going uphill. However, this tactic had already resulted in several dead ends and no Palace.

He was just about to give in and ask someone for directions when a cheery voice rang out through the streets behind him.

"Beclem!" it called, and soon Beclem found himself enveloped in an enthusiastic bear hug. "I heard about the ship exploding and thought you were dead!"

Beclem's captor put him down for long enough for the ex-Crusader to establish his identity. He was a couple of years younger than Beclem, and had dark skin, eyes and hair.

"Maroda," Beclem acknowledged him.

"It's going to be good to have another member of the Youth League here," Maroda commented. "Maybe you can help me talk some sense into these backwards Yevonites, huh?"

"Maybe," Beclem answered noncommittally.

"So, has anyone shown you around the city yet?"

"No, actually…" Beclem wondered if he should ask Maroda to show him the way back to the Palace, but decided instead to wait for Maroda's offer. It was better not to be seen asking for help.

"Come on. I'll show you then," Maroda said, as Beclem had hoped he would.

* * *

Bevelle was a city full of dead ends, secret short cuts and entrances into buildings, and of opulence. Even the least important of buildings were covered in colour and decoration.

"I guess Isaaru's been too busy leading the city to show you around," Maroda commented, when less than an hour later, they found themselves back at the entrance to the Palace.

"This lower level is pretty much just for the public," Maroda explained. "You take the lift straight up to get to the main room of parliament and Isaaru's office. You'll be invited in there eventually I think. Down leads to the Chamber of the Fayth, although I don't know why you'd be going down there. All the priests' rooms are on the left. Isaaru's room is on the right, at the very end of the same corridor you're on. I've got my own place now, so I'm not living here any more. Our younger brother Pacce lives with me."

Beclem only nodded to show his understanding.

The two began walking aimlessly; Maroda pointing out whatever caught his interest at the time, only half of which seemed at all relevant to Beclem, until they found themselves in a small alcove off to one side of the main entrance.

At first glance it seemed like any other room in the Palace, until one realised that it was completely void of any furniture or useful artefacts apart from a large glowing blue glyph on the floor at one end of the room.

"What's this place?" Beclem asked as a strange feeling began to gnaw away at his gut.

"They're calling it Via Infinito," Maroda answered.

* * *

"It will be investigated to the best of our abilities," Isaaru assured the council for what had to be the tenth time. "Lady Yuna is already attending to it."

"But what if you or the Lady die?" one of the council members asked.

"Then our deaths will serve as a warning for other not to follow us," Isaaru answered.

"What if the people of Bevelle find out that something like that is hidden beneath the city?" someone asked. "This could cause more problems than Vegnagun."

"It could definitely cause problems," Isaaru agreed.

"The people need to know of something this large!" a priestess objected.

"Lord Isaaru has already agreed that the people are not to know!" Dorian agreed, interrupting Isaaru's current train of thought.

He hadn't exactly agreed to it, Isaaru thought. Since when had Dorian spoken for him; putting words in his mouth?

"We will not tell the people of Bevelle as yet," Isaaru said, interrupting Dorian's argument as to why Yevon should keep yet another secret. "There is no need to alert everyone as yet. If anything important or potentially dangerous is discovered, then we shall inform the public when appropriate."

No-one could disagree with this, and the room fell silent.

"Is there anything else which needs to be discussed today?"

"My Lord?" a woman put in, just as Isaaru was rising to stand and dismiss the meeting. "I heard the ship that the Youth League ambassador was travelling on was destroyed."

"That is true," Isaaru said, sitting back down. "The Youth League representative was lucky enough to have survived the disaster. A clean-up of the wreckage is currently under way, and the representative, a man by the name of Beclem whom I'm sure you will all come to know well, was injured but has been healed and is on his way to making a full recovery."

"But what could have caused something like that to happen?" the woman that had originally inquired about the ship asked. "I heard that the ship exploded."

"I'm hoping Beclem will be able to shed some light on that matter," Isaaru answered. "Now, does anyone else have anything that needs to be discussed? No? All right. This meeting is now over. We shall meet again in one week."

With that the officials of New Yevon filed out of the room and one by one made their way to various parts of the Palace and the greater city beyond.

Isaaru hung back for a moment, knowing it would be a while before everyone would be able to be transported from the upper to lower levels. No-one attempted conversation with him or any of their fellow priests and priestesses, leaving Isaaru to his own thoughts.

After he had waited for a few more moments he found that his thoughts turned to Beclem. He wasn't sure what to make of the man as yet, but he had a feeling that he and the Youth League ambassador were destined to disagree with one another. He eventually moved from his seat, and set off towards Via Infinito, ready to blow off some steam.

He did not expect to find Beclem and Maroda in the entrance.

"Maroda. Beclem," Isaaru greeted them, unable to keep the surprise from his voice. He nodded politely at Beclem. "I see you recovered your mask from the beach.'

Beclem nodded, showing absolutely no emotion through his mouth. It was unnerving, thought Isaaru and for a moment he wished that the helmet had stayed lost. It was impossible to read Beclem when he wore it, and Isaaru liked to know what the person he was talking to was thinking, or at least have some idea how they felt about the conversation.

"What are the two of you doing here?" Isaaru asked, trying not to show his suspicion.

"I was just showing Beclem around," Maroda said cheerily, all too aware of what Isaaru was worried about. Yevon's secrets were dark and dangerous, and some things should not be told to people who were, until recently, Yevon's greatest enemy.

"I suppose that saves me the trouble of doing it then," Isaaru commented, but Beclem wasn't paying him any attention. The Youth League representative was completely focussed on the glyph on the other side of the room.

"Let me guess," he said, not taking his eyes off the glyph. "That transports you somewhere?"

"Yes," Isaaru answered. "It leads to some of the chambers which were created by our forbears. We're keeping them off limits for now."

"Why?" Beclem asked.

"We fear that they might be dangerous."

Beclem looked mildly intrigued by this. Perhaps he was about to ask something else, but at that moment Isaaru let out a shriek which was completely unexpected and which seemed horribly out of character for the ex-Summoner. His eyes flew wide open as he stared at a spot on the floor beside Beclem.

"What in Yevon's name is that thing doing in here?" he said. "I thought I had escaped those things for ever."

Beclem followed Isaaru's gaze to find a small monkey sitting beside his feet, looking completely harmless. It looked up and appeared to regard Beclem with its beady black eyes for a moment, before lifting its paws to its face to rub at its nose.

So the current leader of Bevelle and New Yevon was afraid of squatter monkeys? Beclem found his image of the ex-Summoner change slightly.

Maroda was trying extremely hard not to chuckle at his older brother, but was failing miserably. One of his hands tried to stifle the laughter that was emerging from his mouth, earning him a rather annoyed look from Isaaru.

The ex-Summoner sighed in exasperation and stormed out of the room, leaving Beclem and Maroda by themselves once again. Beclem watched him leave, his thoughts not at all on Isaaru's reaction to the monkey, but on the way the ex-Summoner acted about Via Infinito. There was something he wasn't being told. Beclem was sure of it.

Maroda's laughter gradually faded away.

"I didn't think it was that funny," Beclem commented as Maroda wiped the last tears of laughter from his eyes.

"Yes it was," Maroda answered. "He sounded like a girl when he shrieked like that!"

"So how does an ex-Summoner become afraid of something as harmless as monkeys?" Beclem thought aloud.

"He's not afraid of them as such," Maroda said. "He was working as a tour guide in Zanarkand before he came here. The monkeys ended up breeding at too fast a rate, and started stealing things from the tourists. Isaaru and his business partner ended up having to shut down because of it." Maroda let out a sigh, and looked in the direction his brother had walked off in. "I better go apologise to him," he said, "otherwise he's going to be annoyed with me for the rest of the day. See ya Beclem!"

An ex-Summoner that hated monkeys and had become a tour guide in Zanarkand after the Eternal Calm had come? If Isaaru was willing to guide tourists through what had to, for him, be one of the most emotionally charged places in Spira, then he was either not nearly as sentimental as the other Summoners that Beclem had heard about, or he was a far more unique and complex character than Beclem had first thought.

Beclem's eyes strayed back to the monkey at his side. A grin formed on his face as he wondered what Isaaru's reaction to a little tormenting might be.

And here he was thinking that this new position would be boring.


	6. Cloister Five

**AN:** I got a review! Hooray! It's nice to know that at least one person is enjoying this story. Thank you so much Naru. This cloister is dedicated to you.

**Cloister Five**

It wasn't often that Isaaru came across someone that he hated, or that he couldn't at least find some redeeming quality in. He was still trying to work out what Beclem's redeeming quality was though.

Every single thing about Beclem got on his nerves. Isaaru still had yet to hear a single nice word come out of Beclem's mouth, and if the man had any social skills whatsoever, then he had yet to show them to the ex-Summoner. Isaaru remembered the kind face he had seen beneath Beclem's mask, and wondered if there wasn't a kinder side to Beclem that he had yet to show. Isaaru ended up deciding that it was best if he didn't get his hopes up in regards to the other man.

It was a very curious situation though. Maroda seemed friendly enough with the man and usually Maroda was a relatively good judge of character. Isaaru decided he would talk to his younger brother about Bevelle's newest arrival.

"Beclem?" was Maroda's immediate reaction. "Well, I'm not exactly his friend as such. He doesn't really have any close friends at all as far as I can tell, and he treats pretty much everyone like shit, so don't worry; you're not alone there. Elma and Lucil seem to know a bit more about him, but neither they nor Beclem ever really talk about it."

"Talk about what?"

"There's something about his past I think, but I wouldn't have a clue what, and for some reason he absolutely hates Summoners, although I've heard he's become sort of friends with Lady Yuna."

"Sort of friends?" Isaaru laughed.

"Well, acquaintances I guess, but that's as close as he ever gets to anyone really. He never lets anyone get close enough to be any more than that."

"Really?" Isaaru said. He stopped to think for a while, before coming to a decision. "Maybe I've judged him a little too harshly. We are going to be spending a lot of time together after all. Perhaps it's better if I attempt to become well… whatever it is the two of you are. 'Sort of friends,' perhaps?"

"Good luck," Maroda sighed, shaking his head at his older brother's refusal to believe that Beclem was just unreachable. "You're going to need it."

* * *

Isaaru stood at the door to Beclem's room, ready to face nearly anything he found inside. The man had been living in the Palace for a couple of days now, and had been given plenty of time to change his room to suit him.

When Isaaru opened the door however, he found that the room and its contents had barely changed at all, apart from a scattering of guns and ammunition that had appeared on Beclem's bedside table. Beclem himself was sitting on the bed with his back facing Isaaru, his attention focussed on something the ex-Summoner couldn't see.

"Beclem," Isaaru said, announcing his presence.

"Hello Lord Isaaru," Beclem said, a little cheerier than Isaaru was expecting. He turned around on the bed so that he was facing Isaaru, and what he held in his hands made the leader of Bevelle scowl.

"What is that!" he growled, pointing at the monkey in Beclem's hands.

"They make great pets," Beclem said as he held the creature out closer to Isaaru. He was smiling, and Isaaru was sure that beneath the mask Beclem would be wearing an evil glare. "I called this one Isaaru since he reminded me of you. See, he has your eyes."

All thoughts of settling their differences were forgotten.

"You…" Isaaru scowled, realising now what made many people often resort to curses. "You're so… argh!" he exclaimed, throwing his hands up in defeat and storming out of the room.

"Why does that man have to be so annoying?" Isaaru complained as he stormed towards Via Infinito, catching the attention of a passing priestess as he did so. He smiled at the nervous looking woman, trying to pretend that he wasn't as frustrated as he appeared, and began scowling again as soon as he had passed her.

He pitied the fiend that came across him when he was in a mood like this.

* * *

"Well, that was an even better reaction than I was hoping for," Beclem said after Isaaru had stormed from his room in annoyance. "I think that was a bit harsh of him though. You're not that bad."

Isaaru the monkey looked up at him, one ear twitching to the side as though he was listening to every word Beclem said.

"You should probably stay here," Beclem said, placing the monkey down on his bed. "If that Summoner finds you he'll probably kill you."

Isaaru's tail twitched behind him, and he settled down on Beclem's bed, finding a little place for himself in a fold in the covers.

_I must be going insane_, Beclem thought as he shut the door behind him, effectively locking the monkey inside his room. _I'm actually thinking of keeping that thing. Not only that, but I was talking to it._

* * *

Bevelle was most beautiful in the middle of the day, when the sun lit up all the golden features of the city, sparkling off its many water fountains and canals and creating a beautiful shining vista. It was through this picture of perfection that Beclem walked that afternoon. He was supposed to be further acquainting himself with the layout of the city, but he found his thoughts constantly straying from the streets of Bevelle to focus instead on Isaaru.

The ex-Summoner was a puzzle to be sure. Beclem felt that he was an incredibly complex person, and wondered what secrets the leader of Bevelle was hiding, for everyone had secrets, and those of a man in a position of power such as Isaaru were bound to be good.

It was only when he realised that he had been thinking of nothing but Isaaru for the last half an hour that he began to wonder why the man fascinated him so.

He couldn't possibly be falling in love with the ex-Summoner could he? Of course not, Beclem thought, shaking his head as he did so. Isaaru wasn't his type. He was admittedly one of the most beautiful people Beclem had ever laid eyes on, but good looks were not all that was required to make a person attractive. He was too proud, and too falsely polite. Isaaru's kindness seemed far too generous for it to be completely genuine. On top of that, Isaaru was a Summoner, and Beclem had never like Summoners; they were all far too righteous and self-sacrificing, and yet if they had defeated Sin only one year earlier, Chappu may have been standing beside him right now.

No, love certainly wasn't the answer, or even attraction. What then? Was it just because Isaaru had such a unique personality? Was it simply because he was so different to Beclem that the Youth League ambassador found Isaaru so remarkable? Maybe it was only because part of him wanted to know what secrets the ex-Summoner was hiding.

He followed his feet where they would take him, and soon he found himself back at the entrance to the Palace. He looked over in the direction of the area that had been called Via Infinito. There was one of Isaaru and Bevelle's most suspicious secrets, just waiting to be discovered.

Well, it couldn't hurt to just take a look, could it?

He entered the chamber and stood there, looking at the glyph for a moment, debating with himself. The Youth League and the people of Spira had a right to know what New Yevon was hiding in there. If it was potentially dangerous then that only made Beclem want to know about it more.

He looked behind and around him quickly to make sure that no-one was watching. If no-one knew that he had been inside Via Infinito then it certainly couldn't hurt, and if it was as harmless and Isaaru had made it sound, then he could leave straight away.

He stepped onto the glyph and relaxed, letting it take him where it would. It seemed to be asking him something. He never was good at working these things, but felt as though it was something about how far into Via Infinito he wanted to travel.

He put his foot forward. Usually this was the correct sign for travelling straight forwards or to the farthest point away from the user's current position. He felt the sickening sensation that came when travelling by glyph, as though his stomach was being pulled up through his mouth, and when he next opened his eyes, found himself in the middle of a chamber far larger than anything he had been expecting.

The entire room was made of the same pale white marble. Every surface was carved with intricate detail. He couldn't see the end of the tunnel he was standing in, and on the floor just beneath him he saw a glyph inscribed on the floor. 'Cloister 63'. He wasn't sure what that was supposed to mean.

The most disturbing thing about this place was that there were pyreflies everywhere; flying overhead, soaring beside the floating path in the middle of the room, and trailing around him in lazy circles. Where there were pyreflies, there were soon fiends. Beclem was suddenly very glad he had his guns with him.

Beclem looked behind himself, expecting to see a glyph similar to the one that had brought him home, but there was no return to be found that way. It was straight forwards then. The path broke in several places, and Beclem found himself having to leap over gaps in the floor. He looked down between these gaps, looking perhaps for another part of Via Infinito, but could see only darkness, lit only occasionally by a pyrefly or two.

There was the sound of a battle around the first turn in the path, and Beclem drew his guns, ready to fire upon whatever enemy he found.

He turned the corner to find Isaaru; busy in a fight against the largest Helm Beclem had ever seen. It was easily twice the height of a normal human being. Isaaru dodged the Helm as it moved to slam against him, retaliating with a powerful burst of fire magic which made the Helm scream and collapse on the floor after what must have been a long match judging by the way Isaaru was panting and sweating.

So, the Summoner had known how large this place was and hadn't told him. Beclem found he was suddenly very annoyed with Isaaru. If there were Helms like that down here, then this place wasn't just 'potentially dangerous'. It was deadly.

"Beclem?" Isaaru asked, noticing his presence for the first time. "What are you doing down here? I thought you were told it was off-limits."

"You have no right to hide something like this!" Beclem roared in return. "From the Youth League or from the people living above this place!"

"You have no right to be down here in the first place!"

"Well, I suppose that makes me just as bad as you then."

Isaaru's slight frown turned into an angry scowl at that last comment; an expression which looked most unusual on thenormally peaceful ex-Summoner's face.

"No," Isaaru said, his voice full of an unexpected power and venom. "I could never be as bad as you."

Beclem was a little taken back. He had never expected Isaaru to show so much strength or bitterness.

"I try and find the best in everyone," Isaaru continued. "But I think I'm about ready to give up searching for it in you."

"Fine then," Beclem said, pointing his guns at Isaaru. "If that's the way it's going to be."

He fired off two perfectly aimed shots; one from each gun, but Isaaru blocked them just in time with a shielded protection spell, stopping the bullets in their tracks.

A cold burst of ice hit Beclem quicker than he thought it was possible for Isaaru to retaliate, bursting through his clothes and making him feel the strangest mix of cold and pain.

He fired another shot, and this one connected with Isaaru's shoulder. Isaaru grimaced, but moved out of the way of Beclem's next round of fire.

Beclem's guns clicked as he ran out of bullets, making the ex-Crusader growl. There was no time for reloading in this battle. Instead he charged towards his enemy, hoping to knock him from his feet.

Isaaru twisted out of the way just before Beclem reached him, and Beclem realised what he hadn't before; the path ended just behind Isaaru, and he found his weight falling off the edge. He reached out for Isaaru's robe as he fell, bringing the ex-Summoner with him.

There was a couple of seconds of complete darkness, then the two of them landed with a thump on hard, cold marble.

Beclem scrambled to his feet, quickly reloading now while he had a chance. Isaaru groaned, and then picked himself off the floor, dragging his staff up with him, coming face to face with one of Beclem's pistols as he did so.

Isaaru smirked confidently, then before he knew what was happening, Beclem felt a sharp pain in the stomach as he was struck by Isaaru's staff. His finger curled around the trigger of one of his pistols as he fell, accidentally letting a shot fly harmlessly just above Isaaru's head.

Beclem tried to pick himself off the ground, but before either of them could make another move, a loud roar echoed throughout Via Infinito, and they suddenly found themselves being attacked by a fierce-looking dragon.

Isaaru and Beclem looked at one another, wordlessly communicating, before agreeing simultaneously that their own fight could wait until this was taken care of.

The dragon charged at Isaaru, who dodged it, countering with a quick blow from his staff. Beclem opened fire, sending a complete round from both of his guns into the beast, but that barely made any difference to it as far as he could see. The dragon barely flinched.

Beclem felt a strange tingling sensation, and looked down his discover his wounds from his fight with Isaaru had been completely healed. He nodded his thanks to Isaaru, just before the creature charged again, this time slamming into Beclem and throwing him back several feet. Beclem felt the blackness of unconsciousness starting to creep up on him, but a warm sensation flowed through him as Isaaru healed him once more.

Isaaru raced towards the beast, getting in a couple of hits with his staff and giving Beclem enough time to reload, this time with much more powerful ammunition.

The fiend was becoming more and more frustrated with Isaaru, as the ex-Summoner continued to evade its attacks. It was so focussed on Isaaru that it almost completely forgot about Beclem, and the ex-Crusader was able to fire several shots into the dragon before it thought about turning around and attacking him instead.

Beclem thought he might have been about to die as the creature charged towards him with all of its might, but a shield was placed in front of him just before the creature connected, softening the blow a little.

The dragon once more became angry with Isaaru and charged towards him; sending him across the hall before he had a change to dodge.

Beclem reached into his pockets, pulling out one of the Phoenix Downs he kept just for unlikely situations like this. He threw it in Isaaru's direction, hoping that it would work.

Beclem fired another complete round into the dragon, and it fell to the ground with an almighty roar. The body burst into a dozen pyreflies as it hit the ground.

Beclem and Isaaru turned to face one another once more; Beclem aiming his guns and Isaaru ready with his staff. Beclem told himself to shoot, but he could still feel the warmth of the shield Isaaru had placed around him, and he lowered his guns.

Suddenly, their earlier fight made very little sense. Isaaru lowered his staff as well, rather thankful that Beclem had chosen not to continue their battle. He had been enjoying the prospect of beating some sense into the man, but after defeating the dragon he began to wonder why it was he had been so frustrated with Beclem in the first place.

"We make a good team," Isaaru commented, his eyes not looking at Beclem but guiltily staring at the floor. Beclem seemed to be pre-occupied with a spot on the wall, choosing to stare at it rather than risk meeting Isaaru's eyes.

"Yeah," Beclem answered quietly.

Every tiny movement either of them made now seemed awkward and potentially peace shattering. Even the tiniest of sounds seemed too loud in this nervous quiet. Isaaru finally broke the silence with a loud sigh.

Bringing his staff around to once again stand in front of him, he made a few movements, and soon a glyph appeared on the floor, reading '64' in large blue letters.

"So, does that mean there are sixty-four rooms like this?" Beclem asked.

"So far," Isaaru answered. "We have no idea how deep these chambers go, but as we travel deeper they grow larger, and the fiends become more and more dangerous."

Isaaru created another, more intricate glyph next to the number.

"I do not know about you," he said, "but I think I am ready to return to the surface."

Beclem nodded, and moved to stand beside Isaaru.

"This will take us back to this room," Isaaru explained, "but something in these chambers interferes with the accuracy of the transportation glyphs. When you try and return here, it will only take you to the correct level, not necessarily to the same spot as the glyph."

"Why are you telling me all of this?"

"Obviously you are going to come down here whether you are permitted to or not," Isaaru answered, still looking guiltily at the floor. "I would rather you were prepared. It would not do anyone any good if you were to die down here."

Beclem moved to stand beside Isaaru on the glyph, unable to think of a response to what Isaaru had just said. As he felt the familiar tug at his stomach, and soon found himself back in the surface world, he couldn't help but wonder why it felt that something substantial had just changed between the two of them.


	7. Cloister Six

**Cloister Six**

Maybe there was something in the air that made Beclem restless over the next couple of days, but whatever it was, he found that he couldn't focus on anything. Every time he and Isaaru passed one another in the hallways they both lowered their gazes, unable to look each other in the eyes.

Beclem had not returned to Via Infinito, but Isaaru continued to explore its depths, and was barely seen on the outside during daylight hours. Each time he emerged, he looked more and more weary and damaged.

Beclem returned to his room on the second afternoon after his fights with Isaaru and the Elder Drake to find a couple of extra inhabitants in his room.

"Hello Beclem," Isaaru said, the monkey that he held in his hands squirming around.

"Hello Isaaru."

"I found this in Via Infinito," Isaaru said, looking at the animal in his arms. "I thought I would bring it to you since you seem to like them so much."

There was a pointed look at the creature that was currently sitting on Beclem's bed as Isaaru spoke. Beclem frowned at this reaction, and then shrugged. For some reason, he had found that himself attached to the small animal. There was now a small tray of dirt in one corner of the room, and monkeys ate almost anything, so feeding it hadn't been a problem. He supposed looking after two couldn't be much more difficult.

"I see you've kept the other one," Isaaru observed with a sly grin. "If that one is Isaaru, then maybe this one can be Beclem?"

"Very funny," Beclem commented, taking his namesake from the other man and placing it on the bed next to Isaaru the monkey.

The two animals seemed to regard one another for a moment, as if trying to work out what to make of each other, before they pounced on one another. At first Beclem thought they were fighting, then on closer inspection he realised that the two monkeys were engaged in much more friendly activities. _Much_ more friendly activities.

"Oh dear," Isaaru exclaimed, a blush quickly spreading across his cheeks. "I didn't realise Beclem was err… female."

Beclem quickly grabbed his namesake by the scruff of the neck, pulling her away from her new friend before the situation became any more embarrassing, if that was possible. He was, right now, infinitely glad that his own blushed cheeks couldn't be seen behind his mask.

"Don't you have any standards whatsoever?" he asked the monkey. She just regarded him with an air of curiosity, before jumping from his hands and landing back on the bed beside Isaaru the monkey.

Beclem and Isaaru were both glad when the animals didn't get quite as friendly as they had the last time.

"That wasn't actually why I came to see you," Isaaru commented. "I came to ask for your help."

"My help?"

"Via Infinito is beginning to become more dangerous," Isaaru explained. "Too dangerous for one person to explore by themselves. I was hoping you might…"

"You were hoping we could forget our differences and work as a team to get further into Via Infinito?"

"Yes; I was."

Beclem sighed. Isaaru looked disappointed already, and Beclem hadn't even declined his offer yet.

"I don't see why not," Beclem answered. Isaaru's face lit up with pleasant surprise.

"Provided," Beclem continued, "that I can tell my superiors back at Youth League headquarters about Via Infinito."

"That should be fine," Isaaru agreed. "But please ensure that they keep the information to themselves. We don't want to start widespread panic."

Beclem nodded.

"I will leave you to make your report then," Isaaru said. "We will begin exploring Via Infinito together tomorrow then, if that is fine by you."

"That's fine," Beclem assured him.

"Right," Isaaru said again. "I will see you around the Palace then."

With that Isaaru left the room. Beclem couldn't help but think that his reaction made the ex-Summoner seem a little too nervous. Perhaps that had something to do with the two monkeys in the room, who were beginning to cosy up to one another again.

"The two of you are not staying in here if you're going to keep doing that," Beclem said, pushing the two overly-friendly monkeys off his bed.

* * *

Beclem turned the Commsphere on, and with a click and then a long buzzing noise, it came alive. He peered into its staticy blue depths and frowned. These were a brand new invention, and they were quickly proving to be extremely useful.

"Commander Lucil," Beclem greeted his superior.

"Beclem," she returned with a sigh. "I hope you've got something worth reporting to me today."

"I have," Beclem answered. "The current Praetor of New Yevon has requested that it be kept secret though."

"Whether we will agree to that condition depends on what the information is," Lucil said.

Beclem took a deep breath. This was going to be an interesting report.

"Lady Yuna and some children of Bevelle have discovered a series of underground chambers in part of the palace. Lady Yuna and Praetor Isaaru have been exploring these chambers. There is no knowledge of how deep they run. It is thought that some of New Yevon's secrets may be hidden in their depths. The chambers are also infested with incredibly powerful fiends."

"How large are these chambers?" Lucil asked.

"Each room is around a couple of hundred metres long from what I've seen," Beclem answered. "And there are more than sixty-four chambers."

The look of shock that Lucil shared with her second-in-command Elma told Beclem exactly what she thought of this news.

"I have been asked to help explore Via Infinito, as it is currently being called," Beclem continued. "I will of course, keep you updated on any progress that is being made in these daily reports."

Lucil just nodded, as though she was still too busy thinking about his previous words to pay much attention to his new ones.

"I don't know what I'm going to tell everyone," Lucil commented.

"Then don't tell them anything," Beclem suggested. "It would be better if we didn't do anything to upset New Yevon. The last thing we want is for the old rivalries to spark back up again."

"You're right," Lucil agreed. "But if you report anything to me which makes me suspect that this Via Infinito may be dangerous then I will not have any problems in letting the Youth League or the rest of Spira know what New Yevon is hiding from everyone, regardless of whether Praetor Isaaru would approve or not."

There was a look in Elma's eyes as Lucil spoke then; probably only admiration for what was undeniably a rather brave and well-spoken conviction, but Beclem couldn't help but wonder. Wasn't that the exact same look he used to give Chappu? Then again, it was more than likely that he was just searching for someone else to project his own problems on in some sort of crazy, subconscious attempt to make himself feel less alone in the world. What was the real chance of there being more than one freak in the Youth League?

"So you will do as Isaaru wishes for now?" Beclem asked Lucil.

"Yes; for now," Lucil responded. "Via Infinito will stay a secret for at least a short time."

Beclem nodded farewell. The gesture was returned by the two women before Beclem turned the sphere off. Beclem placed it back on its place on his desk, nudging away one of the monkeys as it sniffed at the sphere in curiosity.

He began to wonder what he was going to do with himself for the rest of the afternoon, when he heard a scuffling noise just outside of his door.

He opened the door to his room to discover Isaaru running towards him, a limp and bloodied body in his arms.

He stepped back from his door just in time for Isaaru to come running inside his room. Isaaru placed the body on Beclem's bed without an explanation, and began healing it.

Beclem peered over Isaaru's shoulder as he worked. The victim was a woman, probably a few years younger than the both of them, with long green hair tied back into several small braids and exceptionally long fingers and nails. She wore the clothes of a Yevonite, but had the smooth pale skin of an Al Bhed and the slanted features of a Guado. There were bruises all over her face and arms, and probably in other areas that Beclem could not see as well.

"Who is she?" Beclem asked Isaaru.

"I found her on the street," Isaaru said. "She looks to be half Guado. I think she may have become the victim of a Guado bashing attack."

"Attacking her just because she's part Guado?" Beclem asked.

"I am afraid incidents such as these are becoming more and more frequent these days," Isaaru said as a sad look crept onto his face. He brushed a strand of hair away from the woman's face, and moved to stand so that he was facing Beclem once more. "It seems so strange that one bad incident could change Bevelle's opinion of a race that was once regarded as being very noble and wise. Only three years ago it was the Al Bhed that were being punished, and now it is the Guado."

"People always need someone to blame for their problems," Beclem commented. "I find that who they blame is often very illogical, especially when there are rapists and murderers living in the world. It's one of the reasons I dislike Yevon."

Isaaru nodded sadly. "I'm sorry."

"You don't have to apologise," Beclem said, glancing at the woman now lying on his bed. "You're not as bad as the rest of them."

"How do you know that?" Isaaru asked, his eyes full of sorrow.

Beclem merely looked at the Guado and smiled.

"You didn't leave her lying on the streets."

* * *

Keekah opened her eyes very slowly; afraid that anything more would be enough to bring back the enormous headache that had been assailing her senses before she had passed out. Miraculously however, nearly all the pain that she had felt last night had disappeared. She moved one hand to where a particularly nasty wound had been on her arm, and was surprised to find that her hand came away with no blood. All that was left of the wound now was a pale scar.

She looked over from the bed on which she lay to discover two men. She lay there and observed them for a while as they spoke, her attention not on their words, but on the way they interacted. There was something about these two; they weren't friendly or comfortable around each other enough to be friends, but neither was there any hatred or bitterness. They certainly weren't just acquaintances either. They were too familiar with one another for that.

How very interesting, Keekah thought to herself. The taller of the two men said something, and the gentlest of smiles settled on the other man's face. Keekah knew that if she could see behind the shorter man's mask his eyes would probably be shining in appreciation, and quite possibly admiration.

A similar look soon appeared on the taller man's face, and he turned to look towards Keekah.

"Oh," he exclaimed. "You are awake."

He moved over to kneel beside Keekah's bed.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her.

"Fine," Keekah answered, finding her voice was a little more raw than she was expecting. "Thank you."

"What's your name?" the other man asked.

"Keekah," she whispered.

"My name is Isaaru," the man kneeling at her side said. "And this is Beclem."

"Don't thank me Keekah," the man that had been introduced as Beclem said. "Isaaru here did all the saving."

"But she is lying on your bed," Isaaru pointed out.

Beclem shrugged at this.

Keekah felt something moving around near her feet, and looked to the bottom of the bed to find that a couple of squatter monkeys had jumped up to join her.

Keekah giggled as the two animals scrambled up her legs.

Isaaru just frowned and reached out for the nearest monkey.

"Be nice to our guest," Isaaru told it.

* * *

Beclem watched as Isaaru chastised his namesake. The monkey, of course, couldn't care less about what Isaaru was telling it. Beclem smiled at the two of them, but then found his smile slipping as he caught sight of something a little more disturbing.

Isaaru's sleeve had slipped only an inch further up his arm than normal, leaving just a sliver more of his arm to be seen than was usual. There on Isaaru's skin were several long pale scars. Beclem only caught sight of them for a moment, before Isaaru's sleeve slipped back into place once more.

Not all scars on people's wrists came from one thing, Beclem thought to himself. He hoped that they had just come from some sort of accident. Isaaru surely wasn't the sort of person that would do that to himself. He had far too much responsibility. But perhaps that was part of the problem.

Beclem shook away that worrying thought and turned his attention back to Keekah, who was still giggling over Isaaru's argument with the monkey of the same name. He found his attention immediately drawn to her eyes, and it was only when he took a closer look at them that he realised why. Her eyes had the black spirals of an Al Bhed.

"You're half Al Bhed," Beclem observed.

"Yeah," Keekah said with a surprisingly sincere smile. "Half Al Bhed and half Guado."

"How did that happen?" Isaaru gasped.

"Well, my father was an Al Bhed and he fell in love with my Guado mother, obviously," Keekah answered.

"I'm sorry," Isaaru apologised. "It was fairly obvious. I have just never met anyone with that combination of nationalities before."

"You must have the worst luck of anyone in Spira," Beclem commented bitterly. "The Al Bhed bashings finally stop and then the Guado bashings begin."

"Yeah," Keekah said with a nervous giggle and a smile that must have been hard to summon. "But I'm used to it by now. It's just how life is for me. And I have relatives and friends in both Guadosalam and Bikanel if I ever find myself in trouble. There are people in the world that have it far worse than I do."

* * *

"How could she say that?" Isaaru said quietly when Keekah had fallen asleep almost an hour later. In sleep she looked so peaceful; it was hard to imagine how difficult her waking life was.

"She's a very brave woman," Beclem answered, even though he was fairly sure that Isaaru wasn't expecting an answer. "That's how. You have to be, when you're different from the rest of the world."

Isaaru glanced over at Beclem, sure that there was hidden meaning behind Beclem's words that he was missing. Who knew what it was though. Beclem was probably full of secrets.


	8. Cloister Seven

**AN: **Yes, it's been a little while. My apologies to those few of you that are following this story. This was one of my favourite Cloisters to write. I hope you enjoy it as well.

**Cloister Seven**

There were definitely scars on Isaaru's wrist. Beclem was sure he hadn't been imagining it. The question was whether they were caused by Isaaru himself, or by something a lot less dangerous than self mutilation.

If Isaaru really was depressed, then there was certainly more to the Praetor of New Yevon than anyone else had seen so far. The gentle smile he showed everyone may have just been a mask. It made sense in Beclem's mind. No-one could act that selfless without paying for it psychologically.

Beclem smiled down at one of the monkeys, which was pawing at his leg. Isaaru the monkey looked up at him from on the floor, and Beclem could almost swear it was smiling back at him.

He kneeled down and picked the animal up in his arms spending the next few moments looking at the animal closely.

"Is there something about you that I'm missing?" Beclem asked, wanting an answer from the human Isaaru more so than the creature in his arms. "Is there something that everyone is missing?"

Beclem contemplated making a report to the Youth League headquarters, but realised that he had nothing to report. That was better left until later on today anyway. He and Isaaru were planning on beginning their exploration of Via Infinito that morning after all. Hopefully they would find something within the chambers that would prove to be more useful than the fiends were.

Beclem was soon surprised to find one of Isaaru's underlings in front of him.

"Yes?" he asked the man. So far he had found he had very little to do with the other priests and priestesses of Bevelle. They were a grovelling and useless bunch as far as he could tell.

"Have you seen Lord Isaaru?" the priest asked him. "He wasn't at breakfast as usual, and he isn't in any of his usual chambers. He has been spending quite a lot of time around you lately, so we thought he might…"

The priest trailed off, looking around him nervously.

"You thought I might know where he is?" Beclem scoffed, careful to keep his tone indifferent. "Why would I know?"

Beclem felt a sudden panic boiling up inside of him. He didn't know why, but he had the feeling that something very, very bad was happening. Finding Isaaru now seemed to be far more important than it really should have.

He bid the priest farewell, and ran towards the ex-Summoner's rooms. He passed Keekah on the way.

"Have you seen Isaaru this morning?" he asked her, before glancing quickly into the ex-Summoner's rooms to find Isaaru missing.

"No, I haven't," Keekah answered. "Why? What…"

But Beclem was gone before she could finish her question. She frowned as she watched Beclem run down the halls, wondering what could have possibly happened to make Beclem so worried.

For a moment Beclem thought of how embarrassing his panicked state would be if Isaaru turned out to be all right and in no trouble whatsoever.

Then the alternative came into his mind. What if he had run into some trouble? Or what if he had tried to…

No, Beclem told himself. Don't think like that. Just because there were scars on Isaaru's arms didn't mean that Isaaru would try and kill himself.

A flash of a silver knife crossed his memory for a moment, but Beclem shook that thought away for the moment. For now, all that mattered was finding Isaaru. Beclem headed straight for Via Infinito.

* * *

Isaaru glanced around him at the pale blue marble that surrounded him. His eyes followed one particularly beautiful pyrefly as it flew down the chamber and out of sight.

Yes, he thought. This would be the perfect place. By the time anyone found him it would be too late to heal him, and they would just assume that he had been attacked by a fiend. There would be no disgrace for his family, or any scandal for New Yevon to hide. Dorian could rule, as he so obviously wanted to, and everyone could get on with their lives. His memory would fade, as would his unexplainable sorrows. This would be the last day of his life.

He pulled the knife from the folds of his robe and stared at it for a moment. The cold steel of the blade felt so reassuring against his hand. He could see the reflection of the pyreflies in its superbly crafted blade, and for a moment he simply marvelled at the beauty of this moment.

"I better do this before I loose my resolve," he told himself, his hand tightening around the pitch black blade.

There could be no gentleness this time. The blade would have to cut deeply, and then there would only be a few minutes of pain, and then, blissful oblivion.

Isaaru took one last deep breath, and then plunged the blade into his flesh, making sure that there was enough strength behind the movement to cause the required amount of damage.

There was, as expected, an enormous amount of pain that started in his wrist and then spread to most of his arm. Blood began to pool around Isaaru's arm, spreading into the fabric of his robe.

The red, life-giving liquid was flowing out far faster than Isaaru had expected, and before long he felt overcome by dizziness. Blackness seemed to spread behind his eyes, and he collapsed on the floor.

The blood continued to flow.

* * *

Beclem felt his heart racing as he stood on the blue transportation glyph. The tug at his stomach as he was moved seemed to be even more sickening than usual, and Beclem fought against the instinct to throw up.

If Isaaru wasn't in Via Infinito, then Beclem didn't know what he would do or where he would search next, but sure enough, when he landed in the deepest chamber that Isaaru had reached he looked straight ahead of him to see a body lying on the floor, surrounded by a pool of its own blood.

Beclem felt his heart skip a beat or two, before he rushed over beside the body, hoping and fearing what he would find at the same time. He caught sight of the person's long red hair and knew that it couldn't be anyone but Isaaru.

He kneeled beside Isaaru, not caring that his knees were becoming covered in Isaaru's blood, and prayed that he would find some sort of evidence that Isaaru had been beaten by a fiend.

Isaaru was clutching something in his right hand however, and Beclem looked closer to find that it was a blood-covered knife, and sure enough, the blood was streaming from a fresh gash on Isaaru's left wrist.

"Damn it!" Beclem cursed as he reached into his pockets for a Phoenix Down. He pulled the lid off the bottle with his teeth, while one of his hands checked at Isaaru's neck for a pulse.

Thankfully one still existed, but it was so weak that Beclem almost missed it. He applied the Phoenix Down hurriedly, grabbing for two of the strongest healing potions he possessed at the same time.

Beclem had just finished applying the potions when Isaaru's eyes opened. The blood faded as Beclem watched, the wound on Isaaru's wrist closing and leaving nothing but a pale white scar.

"Beclem…?" Isaaru asked, his eyebrows furrowing as he took in Beclem's familiar mask, beneath which were tear-streaked cheeks.

"You're alive," Beclem sighed. "Good."

He reached up an arm and wiped away the tears that had gathered on his face in frustration. He hadn't even realised that he had been crying until now.

"What in the farplane did you think you were doing!" Beclem roared, the sudden change in his mood making Isaaru recoil. "I thought you were better than this! Why did you try and take the coward's way out!"

"The… coward's way?" Isaaru repeated, still coming to terms with the fact that he wasn't dead.

"Yes, Isaaru," Beclem growled, grabbing Isaaru's wrist and holding it up so that Isaaru could see the fresh scar that was beginning to form there. "The coward's way."

"You wouldn't understand," Isaaru sighed. "You should have just left me here."

"Don't you dare say something like that! Not after I just saved you!" Beclem said through clenched teeth. "Don't even think about it! Now tell me why you did this!"

"I told you; you wouldn't understand," Isaaru said, with more conviction than Beclem had expected.

"You'd be surprised."

"I…" Isaaru froze for a moment, and just stared up the ceiling of Via Infinito. "I just can't make everyone happy. No matter how hard I try, I never make any difference. I don't have a purpose, and without that, I'm lost."

"What do you think you're talking about?" Beclem said. "You're…"

"Don't you try and make me feel better by saying that New Yevon needs me, Beclem!" Isaaru said, getting just as angry as Beclem had. "New Yevon doesn't give a damn whether I die or not. All I am to them is a figurehead. Pacce and Maroda don't need me anymore. All I am in an empty shell now. I'm no use to anyone!"

"I wasn't going to say any of that," Beclem said quietly. "Because you've undoubtedly already thought about such obvious things, and, if you ask me, they're all pretty stupid reasons why a man shouldn't kill himself."

"What?" Isaaru began to speak, but Beclem silenced him with a hand gesture and continued.

"If they're the only reasons you can come up with for your existence, then it means that the only reason you exist is to make other people happy. That's no way to live. What about living to make yourself happy? It's obvious that you're not going to care whether or not I'm crying my eyes out tomorrow because you're gone, because you won't be around to see it. And you know what else you won't be around to see?"

Isaaru shook his head hesitantly.

"You won't be around to see a sunrise ever again, and you won't see Maroda laugh again, or see Pacce grow up. You won't ever discover what lies at the bottom of this ridiculous dungeon, and…" he added, reaching down to offer Isaaru a hand up off the floor. "You won't be able to kick my arse again, will you?"

Isaaru hesitated for a moment, before grabbing Beclem's hand and then, with an unexpectedly cheeky grin, pulling Beclem back down to sit on the cold stone floor beside him.

"I want to talk to you for a bit," Isaaru explained, the grin slipping from his face. "We can't do that on the surface without crowds of people surrounding us, so you're staying here for a while longer."

"All right," Beclem sighed. "What did you want to talk about?"

"You knew exactly what I needed to hear just then," Isaaru told the other man. "You guessed things about me that I wasn't even sure of. If I didn't know any better, then I'd think that you had…"

"I did," Beclem interrupted. "Or at least I thought about it. I was talked out of it by a good friend. I realised that if I died, I would never be able to see his smile again."

"I'd like to meet this friend," Isaaru commented. "He must be someone very special to make you to change your mind."

"He's in the farplane now."

"Oh; I am sorry."

"I thought about joining him for a while after he died as well, but then I realised how pissed off he would be with me if I met him in the farplane."

Isaaru chuckled then, the surprisingly welcome sound echoing around the empty hallway.

"I got the scar on my face the day he died," Beclem continued. "Not from a suicide attempt, but in battle. That's the only way for a true warrior to die."

There was a moment of silence, before Isaaru said something completely unexpected.

"Take your mask off."

"What! Why?"

"The only time I have ever seen your face was when I rescued you on the beach. It feels strange having a conversation like this with someone when I can't see their eyes."

"I'll take it off on one condition," Beclem answered after a moment's contemplation.

"What is it?"

"Promise me you won't try to kill yourself again."

"I promise."

"Mean it."

Isaaru was quiet for a moment as he thought. Could he go on living now? For some reason most of him was now inclined to say 'yes' if that meant the simple pleasure of getting to see Beclem's face again. When Beclem was around, death didn't seem like such an attractive option anymore.

"I promise you I will not try to kill myself again," Isaaru said. Something about his tone of voice helped Beclem realise how sincere he was, and he gave in, reaching up with both of his hands to take off Chappu's helmet, voluntarily revealing his face for the first time in over two years.

Without the helmet Beclem felt vulnerable, and looked this way and that, trying to avoid meeting Isaaru's eyes. Isaaru reached out and gently ran a finger over the scar on Beclem's forehead, noting that Beclem tensed at his touch.

He moved his hand down to Beclem's chin, raising it so that Beclem was forced to look him in the eye. He smiled gently, and was surprised to see the smile reflected on the other man's face. There was still moisture on Beclem's face from his tears, and Isaaru brushed it off with a sigh.

"I guess," he said, as he removed his hand from Beclem's cheek, "that we all have scars and secrets hidden away where no-one can see them."

* * *

Isaaru and Beclem emerged from Via Infinito over an hour later. They had sat on the cold floor for a while longer, talking about whatever took their fancy at the moment. Their pasts; their dreams, but nothing too serious or deep, and the scars on Isaaru's wrist were not brought up again. Beclem's mask stayed off until they left Via Infinito.

Beclem couldn't remember when the last time was that he had been involved in such an open conversation, but knew that it must have been when Chappu was still alive. He had also decided that he liked Isaaru a lot more when he was being more open; when the fake smile and kind words were forgotten, and he was no more than a person, like everyone else.

Keekah saw them soon after they had emerged, and smiled at the two of them. It didn't look as though much had happened at first glance. There was no evidence of a battle, but there was something strange about Beclem's eyes; just a hint of red around the edges, as though he had been crying about something, and there was something about the way the two were interacting that made Keekah wonder if something hadn't happened to make the two of them become just a little bit closer to one another.

Isaaru and Beclem smiled in return, and their smiles seemed, for once, completely sincere and warm.


	9. Cloister Eight

**Cloister Eight**

Days pass, as they do. Beclem and Isaaru's foray into the depths of Via Infinito began, and progressed very slowly. The fiends were becoming progressively stronger, and at the depths Isaaru had already reached were already very strong. Beclem and Isaaru could only journey through a chamber or two a day before they found they were completely exhausted.

Soon Keekah announced that she would be travelling back to the Al Bhed homeland of Bikanel Island.

"There's been a lot of damage there because of an unexpected fiend attack," she explained. "They'll probably need some more help cleaning up, and I'm not sure how much longer I can live in Bevelle before the anti-Guado sentiments begin to get to me."

"So," Isaaru asked. "When are you leaving?"

"This afternoon."

"That soon?" Isaaru questioned. Beclem found that he was as shocked as the ex-Summoner.

"Well, I found a ship at the docks that's planning on travelling there anyway," Keekah explained. "It's leaving this afternoon, and the Captain's allowing me on board. There's no point in delaying it. I don't want to impose on the two of you any more than I already have."

The truth was that Keekah didn't impose all that much. A mattress had been set up on the floor in Beclem's room, but the woman was so quiet that Beclem barely knew she was there most of the time.

He was embarrassed to say it, but he was going to miss the woman's presence.

* * *

That afternoon the atmosphere at the docks was a solemn one, despite the weather's insistence that it shouldn't be. The sunset lit Bevelle in the most beautiful shades of pink and silver, making the whole city shimmer like a dream or spirit arising from the farplane.

Maroda had joined his older brother and Beclem on the docks. Apparently he and Keekah had talked quite a few times and had formed something approaching a friendship. The brothers were currently talking, leaving Beclem to say his goodbyes to Keekah.

"Good luck," Keekah told Beclem, offering him a sweet smile.

"What with?" Beclem asked.

"Him obviously," Keekah said, nodding in Isaaru's direction.

"What are you talking about?" Beclem objected.

"You're in love with him, obviously," Keekah giggled.

Beclem looked shocked.

"I am not!" he roared.

"That's all right," Keekah commented. "I'm half Al Bhed remember. They don't care about things like that. Your secret's safe with me."

"But I'm not…" Beclem tried to object, but Keekah just smiled at him, ignoring what he was trying to say. "I mean, I am like that… but I'm not, you know... not with Isaaru anyway."

"Are you sure about that?"

Beclem found that he didn't have an answer.

* * *

"What's going on between the two of you?" Maroda asked his older brother as they waited for Keekah's departure.

"What do you mean?" Isaaru asked, genuinely not understanding what Maroda was asking him.

"There's something going on between you and Beclem. I don't know what it is, but these last couple of days you've barely left one another's side."

"I asked him to help me explore Via Infinito," Isaaru answered, unwilling to tell his brother any more. If Maroda knew what had truly happened, then he would be furious, and Isaaru didn't want to make his brother angry on such a perfect moment as this.

"We've discovered that we make quite an effective team when fighting," Isaaru added, sending a smile Maroda's way.

"Still," Maroda said, his attention turning to where Keekah and Beclem were standing. "There's something about him."

"Who? Beclem?" Isaaru queried.

"Yeah," Maroda answered. "There's something about the way he acts around you. I've never seen him be so open or friendly towards anyone before. Something must have happened between the two of you."

"Not really," Isaaru lied. "Maybe he just likes me."

"He doesn't like Summoners," Maroda retorted.

"Why are you being so bitter?" Isaaru demanded of his younger brother. "You should be happy that he's finally opening up to someone."

"Perhaps," Maroda said, as he gazed at the ex-Crusader as he farewelled Keekah with a handshake. Keekah pulled her hand away from Beclem before he could object, and threw herself on him in an enthusiastic hug. Beclem seemed shocked for a while, and didn't move at all, before he very shyly returned the hug with one arm.

Keekah pulled away as someone on board the ship called her, and she ran up the ship's boarding plank.

Keekah had her small pouch of belongings with her, and waved goodbye to Beclem and Isaaru from onboard the large wooden carrier that was heading towards Bikanel. Her eyes sparkled, and it was almost impossible to imagine what she had to face most days of her life.

Beclem moved to stand beside Isaaru and Maroda, as the two brothers waved goodbye to Keekah. He put one hand up in the tiniest of waves as the ship pulled out.

Maroda soon walked off, but Isaaru and Beclem stayed on the docks, watching until the ship was no more than a dot on the horizon.

"Do you think we'll ever see her again?" Isaaru asked.

"Who knows?" Beclem answered. "Maybe. The world works in very strange ways after all."

"That it does," Isaaru agreed.

* * *

"So what Cloister are you up to now?" Elma asked as soon as Beclem had switched the Commsphere on.

"Seventy-nine," Beclem answered. "This afternoon we tackle Cloister Eighty. According to Isaaru there was a shockingly powerful fiend located at Cloisters twenty, forty and sixty, so I'm quite nervous about what we will find when we return."

Lucil moved into the view of the Commsphere.

"Be sure to let us know what happens when you report tomorrow," the Commander told Beclem.

"I will," Beclem agreed.

"You've become a lot more agreeable of late," Elma noted with a smile.

"I think the people here are beginning to have an effect on me," Beclem commented.

"Was that… no, it couldn't have been a smile, could it Beclem?" Lucil joked.

"Of course not," Beclem immediately answered.

"Sounds like someone there has definitely been having an effect on you," Elma laughed. "Let's see; who do you think it could be Commander?"

"Well, he never really mentions anyone but Praetor Isaaru," Lucil said. "But Beclem couldn't possibly be finding inspiration in an ex-Summoner, could he?"

This entire sentence was said with what could easily be seen to be an evil grin on the woman's face. Lucil and Elma shared a smile, then turned back to glare at Beclem.

"We're becoming friends," Beclem admitted.

"Friends!" Lucil exclaimed, as though it was the most shocking news Beclem had so far reported to her. Beclem just shrugged, trying to ignore the looks the two women were giving him.

"This will be the first real friend you've had since Chappu died," Elma said with a smile. Beclem flinched at his old friend's name.

"It's not that unusual or exciting, all right?" Beclem said, trying to get rid of their interest in the relationship between himself and Isaaru. Keekah's words from earlier that day kept coming back to haunt him, and he found himself wondering if there wasn't some small amount of truth behind her guesses.

"All right then," Lucil said, trying to disguise her laughter. "Keep us updated on your progress into Via Infinito, and on Isaaru."

With that the two women were gone, leaving Beclem with the feeling that they were going to be gossiping about him all afternoon.

* * *

"We will be journeying to Cloister Eighty today," Isaaru reminded Beclem. "Are you sure you're ready for a possibly difficult battle?"

"As always," Beclem said, drawing one of his guns from his pocket and checking it to make sure that it was fully loaded.

"Good," Isaaru said. They took one step forwards at the same time, and were soon transported to Cloister Eighty.

It took the two of them a couple of seconds of standing still and blinking away the strange sensation that always came with travelling by glyph before either of them felt ready to start walking.

About a hundred metres ahead of them stood a single figure. At this distance it was impossible to identify them, but there was something about the way they stood that sparked something in Beclem's memories.

Beclem began walking closer to the figure, and soon he could see that whoever it was stood with their back to Beclem and Isaaru.

"Beclem," Isaaru called. "Be careful."

As Beclem moved closer he could make out a head of gravity-defying red hair and a stance that was definitely proving to be familiar. Beclem could remember all too well the figure's cheerful smile, and light laughter, and had been haunted by the memory of it every day for the past three years.

"Chappu!" Beclem called out, and began running towards the redhead.

Isaaru hung back though. There was something about this situation that just wasn't right. The pyreflies around the area seemed to be passing just a little too close to Chappu, if that was indeed his name as Beclem seemed to think it was.

What would an old friend of Beclem's be doing in the depths of Via Infinito though?

Beclem continued to run towards the figure, a cheery quality in his voice that Isaaru had never heard before.

Chappu's head finally turned, and he looked towards Beclem, causing the ex-Crusader to stop in his tracks. He smiled at Beclem widely, but there was something in his eyes that told Isaaru to be cautious.

"Beclem!" Isaaru called. "Don't get too close! Something's not right!"

At that moment a loud laughing began to erupt from Chappu's mouth, so deep and powerful that there was no way it could have come from human vocal chords. The laughter echoed throughout the chamber so loudly that Isaaru could feel the ground shake beneath his feet.

The pyreflies surrounding Chappu began swarming. Parts of Chappu's body began to move and stretch with a series of sickening creaks and snaps. Within a couple of seconds he had grown and merged with the pyreflies to create something that looked as though it shouldn't have existed outside of a nightmare.

Chappu's new form seemed to be a sickening hybrid of machina and fiend, and was covered in claws and scales. It rose up, floating only a foot or two off the ground, and still the top of its grossly enormous bulk almost touched the top of the hundred foot high ceiling.

Beclem recognised the shadow from on board the ship, and found himself unable to move for shock and fear. Deep within the distorted form, there was still a face that looked vaguely human, and Beclem looked within its shining yellow slanted eyes to catch a glimmer of something that might have once been Chappu.

Chappu stared down at Beclem, and moved one enormous claw covered arm to strike Beclem down. A sickening crack echoed throughout Via Infinito, and for a moment Isaaru feared the worst, but a glance at Beclem revealed that the crack had been no more than his mask breaking in two.

It fell away from Beclem's face, revealing the shocked look beneath.

"Beclem!" Isaaru called, trying to pull Beclem from his shocked state. He ran towards the ex-Crusader and the fiend; readying his staff for the healing spell that he knew Beclem would need.

He cured Beclem as soon as he guessed himself to be within range and turned to face the Chappu fiend. Isaaru ran towards it and struck it with his staff, but this did absolutely nothing. There wasn't even a dint or scratch on the monstrous fiend's thick rock-hard hide.

The fiend stared down at Isaaru and moved its enormous clawed hand to strike the ex-Summoner and send him flying across the room. This seemed to snap Beclem out of his shocked state and he jumped to his feet, firing a round of shots at the fiend. When this did no more than Isaaru's attack had, Beclem fell back, and concentrated his attack instead on healing Isaaru. A few potions saw Isaaru back on his feet.

"Attacks don't do anything," Isaaru pointed out.

"Try magic then," Beclem suggested.

Chappu charged towards them again, throwing them both back. Beclem felt his back snap as it hit the wall of the chamber. Isaaru looked as though he was about to heal Beclem, but the ex-Crusader shook his head and looked pointedly towards the fiend they were fighting.

Isaaru nodded his understanding and turned towards the fiend once more. He murmured a couple of words and soon a powerful burst of fire erupted over the skin of the monster.

Chappu growled in annoyance, his eyes flashing brightly in anger. He glared at Isaaru and struck the Praetor once more. Isaaru tried to get to his feet, but failed as soon as he put his weight on his left ankle.

Beclem reached one aching hand to his pocket, struggling to find anything resembling a potion. His hand grasped around something, and he threw it towards Isaaru. The other man smiled in thanks and applied it to his ankle, moving out of the way just before Chappu could strike him again.

"We've got to get out of here!" Isaaru yelled at Beclem. "If we stay here we're just going to end up dead!"

Beclem nodded, and Isaaru wrapped an arm around him, pulling Beclem to his feet. They both grimaced as they were hit by one final attack before they could run far enough, and practically collapsed on top of the transportation glyph.

Beclem breathed a sigh of relief when he found himself back at the entrance to Via Infinito. He looked over to find Isaaru lying on the ground next to him.

Isaaru groaned as he got to his feet, and within a couple of minutes he had healed them both back to full health. Beclem reached up to his face as he felt Isaaru's healing magic flow through the gash that had been dealt to his face and remembered what had happened to Chappu's mask.

Chappu…

The full reality of what had just happened hit Beclem once more, and he felt a tightness building up in his chest. For just a moment he had hoped that somehow he would be able to see Chappu again, whether that fiend in Via Infinito had been Chappu in his unsent form or not.

He had never cried for Chappu; not even when he had been so deeply depressed that he had thought about bringing a gun to his head, but before he could stop it, a solitary tear ran down his cheek. He tried to choke it back, but realised any hope that he had of putting up a strong face was gone. The mask had disappeared, as had any emotional defence he had left.

Tears began to run down his face, unable to be stopped. Beclem was annoyed to discover that he was weeping. Not only that, but it was in front of the Praetor of New Yevon.

Isaaru stared at him with a concerned and almost sympathetic look on his face. Beclem continued to try and hold back his own weakness unsuccessfully, the choking sobs bursting from his mouth without his permission.

Then, the most unexpected thing happened. Beclem found Isaaru's arms wrapping around him in a comforting embrace. Isaaru guided Beclem's head to rest against his shoulder. Beclem tried to struggle, but he eventually gave in, clinging to Isaaru's robes as though they were his last lifeline.

They stayed like that for a while; Beclem sobbing against Isaaru's shoulder and Isaaru not questioning his tears, but doing his best to comfort the ex-Crusader, until Beclem's sobbing began to quieten, turning into the weak raw sound that only came after all the moisture in the eyes had fallen as tears.

"Was he the friend you were talking about?" Isaaru's question was no more than a whisper. "The one you said stopped you?"

Beclem nodded against Isaaru's shoulder.

"His name was Chappu," Beclem told the ex-Summoner.

"You must have truly cared about him," Isaaru commented.

Beclem froze for a second, fearful that Isaaru had accidentally happened upon the truth.

"What's wrong?" Isaaru asked, as he felt Beclem tense against him.

"I…" Beclem began, just before a fresh wave of tears washed over him. "I'm so sick of hiding…" he managed to cry out between sobs. "I just… wish… that I didn't… have to pretend… anymore."

"What are you talking about Beclem?" Isaaru asked. "You don't have to pretend anything when you're around me. You know that."

"You don't understand," Beclem cried as he tried to pull away from Isaaru's embrace, but Isaaru forcefully kept him there, one hand refusing to leave the spot where it rested firmly against Beclem's back.

"Then tell me. Make me understand," Isaaru pressed.

Beclem looked up to meet Isaaru's concerned gaze and came to a decision. Perhaps it was time to stop running, the consequences be damned.

"You're probably going to hate me," Beclem warned him. "You're probably going to call the guards and have me arrested."

Isaaru just looked confused. "Why would I want to do that?"

Beclem took a deep breath, willed away the last of his tears, and took one last breath of Isaaru's comforting scent.

"When you said that I must have really cared about Chappu," Beclem began, "you don't know how right you were. Chappu was my everything. I loved him."

Isaaru froze. Beclem expected his hands to move from their place around his back, but they barely moved.

"But you're both…" Isaaru said, his eyebrows furrowing in confusion.

"Men, yes," Beclem said, still waiting for the moment when Isaaru would pull away from him in disgust. "That's why I thought you might want to call the guards. According to New Yevon, homosexuality is still a crime."

"But if you loved him, then how…" Isaaru said, gazing at a spot on the wall instead of the man that was still in his arms.

"How what?" Beclem asked, afraid that he let a little too much fear and bitterness into his voice.

"How can that be a crime?" Isaaru finished. "That's just as bad as hating Al Bhed because they use machina, or hating the Guado just because one of them slipped up."

"You mean you don't mind?" Beclem asked.

"No," Isaaru answered. "Why would I? It's not as though you're going to fall in love with me or anything, right?"

Beclem let out a small chuckle then, Isaaru's unexpected acceptance of him bringing him a joy he never would have thought he could feel after such an experience as the one he had just had in Via Infinito.

"Then why the look of shock?" Beclem asked Isaaru, smiling up at him warmly.

"I guess I never even thought of it as a possibility before," Isaaru admitted.

"You don't think it's weird?"

"Well, maybe a little," Isaaru admitted. "But everyone has something about them that others might see as being weird. Yours is just a little more obvious than most."

"Thank you," Beclem said, finally pulling himself away from Isaaru's arms. "You know, Chappu was the only other person I've ever told that to. You won't tell anyone else, will you?"

"Of course not," Isaaru said. "You already know my biggest secret after all."

Beclem got to his feet and offered Isaaru a hand up off the floor. Their hands clasped around one another's, and Beclem could feel that there was a bond there that hadn't been before. Energy shot through his hand at the simple touch, and Beclem knew, in that instant, that Keekah had been right.


	10. Cloister Nine

**Cloister Nine**

When the next day dawned Beclem was immediately reminded of the previous day's events by an excruciating headache. He looked over to the table that stood beside his bed to find it void of the helmet which usually sat there. It hurt a little to realise that his last physical tie to Chappu was gone, but not as much as he thought it would have.

Something else had moved to fill the place in his heart where his love for Chappu had once resided. Isaaru had accepted him even more warmly than Chappu had.

Beclem could still feel the ghost of a warm touch where Isaaru had let his hands rest the day before. Isaaru's kind smile flitted across his memory, and Beclem let out a groan as he realised how far he had fallen.

Damn Keekah for being so right about him…

It was bad enough that he had fallen in love. The fact that the new object of his affection was an ex-Summoner and the current leader of New Yevon just made it one hundred times worse.

Then again, perhaps Isaaru was open-minded enough to actually…

No. Beclem didn't let himself even hope that Isaaru returning his affections was a possibility. That could only lead to heart break.

The world really did work in strange ways, Beclem thought, smiling as he remembered how his earlier interactions with Isaaru had begun. When he thought about it though, he realised he had never really hated Isaaru; not even when they had been trying to kill each other. He hated what Isaaru stood for, and he hated the way the other man always acted so polite and happy around others when that was clearly not who he truly was, but Beclem had never known Isaaru enough to hate him, at least, not until recently.

And this knowledge certainly hadn't brought hatred, but the opposite, even though love would probably bring even more problems than hate would. Still, it was nice to have something to look forward to, even if that was just seeing a certain someone else smile.

* * *

"My Lord?" Dorian asked Isaaru for what was the third time. "We were asking if you had reached a new Cloister yesterday."

"Hmm?" Isaaru said, the faraway look disappearing from his face as he was practically forced to pay attention to the meeting he was currently involved in. "No, we didn't. There was a powerful fiend in Cloister Eighty and Beclem and I were forced to retreat."

Isaaru still hadn't decided whether or not he would fight the fiend again. It seemed too cruel to force Beclem into another fight against a being that used to be one of the few people he had ever cared for.

Apart from that, Isaaru had far too many other things to think about.

Beclem's revelation of the previous day kept haunting Isaaru. He had meant what he had said to Beclem; he had honestly never even thought of two men being in love with each other as a possibility, and a small part of his mind kept wondering if perhaps he was the same as Beclem.

He had never found a woman that he could fall in love with; had found only a handful that he could even admit to finding attractive. Yet there was something about Beclem that awoke something in him that Isaaru hadn't even known had existed beforehand.

The idea that it might have been love was something he hadn't even considered until yesterday. Surely it couldn't be love though, or even attraction. Isaaru told himself that it was merely because he had finally found someone that understood him. He would willingly admit to caring from Beclem, more than he had cared for anyone before, but surely that didn't mean he was in love. That would mean too many problems for Beclem and himself.

Then why couldn't he stop thinking about what Beclem said? And why did every last trace of the once powerful desire to kill himself evaporate every time he so much as pictured the other man's face?

"…preparations are going smoothly…" Isaaru caught a snatch of the current conversation. "It should be quite a spectacular event."

"Preparations for what?" Isaaru asked, afraid that his thoughts had once again caused him to miss an incredibly important part of the conversation.

"The ball for Praetor Baralai's return," a woman answered, smiling warmly at Isaaru as she did so. "Remember; I told you we received word that he would be returning to Bevelle yesterday. The ball celebrating his return will be held tomorrow night."

"Are you sure you're content to simply stand aside for him?" Dorian pressed Isaaru.

"I'll be fine," Isaaru told the man.

* * *

"The ball celebrating Praetor Baralai's return to power will be held tomorrow night," Isaaru told Beclem later that afternoon. "After that time I will no longer be in power. You are invented to the ball of course; as the resident representative of the Youth League."

"So what are you going to do now that your leadership skills are no longer needed around here?" Beclem asked from where he sat on his bed.

"I'm not really sure to be honest," Isaaru admitted. He frowned, waiting for Beclem to make room on the bed beside him before sitting next to his friend. "I'd like to stay here. I hope I can find something to keep me busy."

"So, you aren't depressed because you're not going to have a purpose anymore?" Beclem asked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

"No, surprisingly," Isaaru answered. "I thought I would be, but I'm not. It's strange." Isaaru looked around the room and then frowned again. "What happened to Beclem and Isaaru?" he asked.

"You mean the monkeys? I don't know. I haven't seen them since early this morning. They're probably running around the Palace somewhere."

"All right," Isaaru said, getting to his feet once more. "So, I'll see you there tomorrow night?"

"What are you talking about?" Beclem protested. "You'll see me before then."

"I probably won't actually," Isaaru said, a slightly embarrassed look appearing on his face. "I have a lot of work to get through before Praetor Baralai returns to power. I will be stuck in my office all day."

"Well, I suppose that can't be helped," Beclem admitted. "I'll see you tomorrow night then."

* * *

Time always goes slowest when you're waiting for something. Having twenty-four hours between the time you're looking forward to and the present makes for a lot of waiting, and a lot of stretched time. Telling the Youth League about Lord Baralai's return to his position as leader of New Yevon only took half an hour out of Beclem's time, a walk around the Palace and resultant boring and pointless conversation with one of the Bevelle guards only took another forty-three minutes.

When night came sleep evaded Beclem, and when he finally caught it, he was faced with another whole day to fill. Had he really been spending so much time with the ex-Summoner that without Isaaru's company he became completely bored? Apparently so, and he spared a thought for the Praetor, who was undoubtedly trapped behind mountains of paperwork right now, with no escape in sight.

Eventually night fell, and Beclem made his way to the Palace hall, a rather large freestanding building located behind the Palace. He arrived right at the time Isaaru had told him to, and already there were quite a few people in the room.

There was a crowd of people milling around someone in the corner. Beclem glanced over to see if it was Isaaru, but a flash of dark skin and shockingly pale hair told him that this was Baralai, the man who Isaaru would have to step aside for.

A man soon announced Isaaru's entry, and Beclem turned, along with half of the occupants of the hall, to stare at the doorway, where Isaaru stood, radiating in regal beauty.

Isaaru had forsaken his usually brightly coloured robes in favour of a more formal outfit. His robes were a brilliant mixture of black, purple and shining silver, which did everything to accentuate the rich colour of his hair and his naturally fine features. As was the tradition among the Guado and several branches of the Yevonites, Isaaru wore a small amount of makeup; black kohl around his eyes and the tiniest amount of subtle colour on his lips.

For a few seconds, Beclem forgot how to breathe.

Beclem was too far away from the entrance Isaaru had come through to reach him before a small horde of underlings and admirers crowded around him. Beclem hung back for a while, waiting for the crowd to disappear, watching as most of them knelt and kissed Isaaru's hand in a gesture of respect and greeting.

Beclem shivered in anticipation of having to perform what was supposedly such a simple act, but the memory of which would undoubtedly haunt him for days.

The group of people around Isaaru began to thin. Isaaru caught Beclem's eye over the crowd and he began to make his way towards the other man, a smile planted firmly on his face. Beclem returned the smile as Isaaru neared him.

"Beclem," Isaaru nodded, greeting him simply.

"Lord Isaaru," Beclem replied.

He took a deep breath, and kneeled before the other man. He very gently reached out to take Isaaru's hand in his own, and moved it towards his mouth. His lips tenderly brushed the soft skin of Isaaru's hand. A thrill coursed throughout Beclem's body at the simple touch, and he was afraid he let his lips linger on Isaaru's hand for just a little too long for it to be a simple gesture of greeting.

He pulled back slowly, and when he dared to look up at Isaaru's face, the Praetor immediately smiled widely at him. Isaaru's hand tightened around his, and the next thing he knew he had been pulled to his feet.

* * *

There was something akin to an electric shock that travelled up Isaaru's arm as soon as Beclem's lips made contact with the back of his hand. It felt both warm and cooling at the same time, and was so strangely exhilarating. Did Beclem's lips linger a little too long on his hand, or was that just wishful thinking on Isaaru's part?

Over twenty other people had already greeted Isaaru through a kiss on the hand, and not one of them had caused such a reaction in him as Beclem had.

Isaaru was snapped back to reality as Beclem's soft lips left his hand. Isaaru couldn't help but smile when he saw Beclem's surprisingly trusting face looking at him questioningly. Isaaru moved his hand around so that it was gripping Beclem's tightly, and pulled the Youth League representative to his feet.

Neither of them could think of anything to say. At least, they couldn't think of anything to say that wouldn't land them both in an incredibly awkward situation.

Whether it was fortunate or not was difficult to tell, but Isaaru was soon swept up by another round of eager Yevonites. Beclem simply waved to him as he was led away to be introduced to friends, delegates and officials.

Isaaru smiled back at him, and only once he had turned back and Beclem could no longer see his face, did he allow himself to let the small gasp he had been holding in.

* * *

The night wore on, and eventually Beclem found his way back to Isaaru's side. Luckily a long enough time had passed since the kiss to make the situation a little less awkward.

Entrees had been brought into the hall, music was now being played by a small band that had been hired for the occasion, and quite a few people were now dancing in the centre of the hall. Isaaru was watching a few people turn and twirl elegantly on the dance floor when Beclem sidled up to him.

"Why don't you dance with someone?" Beclem asked the ex-Summoner.

"Because there are spherecasts being sent from here, and the palace has many avid gossipers in its halls," Isaaru answered with a barely hidden chuckle. "If I dance with one person, then everyone will assume that I am courting her. If I dance with two people, then I will have to dance with every admirer I have for the sake of politeness, and I will not be able to do anything else the entire night."

A wicked grin made its way onto Isaaru's face then, and he glanced at Beclem.

"Why don't you dance with anyone?" he said, laughing as he spoke.

"Very funny," Beclem said, trying not to let his frown slip from his face. Isaaru's laughter was quite contagious. "Could you imagine the scandal if I asked someone I actually _like_ to dance?"

"Would you like to dance with me then?" Isaaru asked, still giggling whole-heartedly. "It would be worth it just to see the look on everyone's faces!"

"You've had too much wine to drink, haven't you?" Beclem said, a smile still on his face.

"I haven't had anything to drink at all!" Isaaru protested. "I am just in an extremely good mood tonight."

The two were interrupted when a dark hand found its way on to Isaaru's shoulder.

"Hey Isaaru!" Maroda said, greeting his older brother warmly. His attention soon turned to Beclem. "And who's this? I don't think we've met."

"Moron," Beclem returned.

"Beclem?" Maroda practically yelled as a blush found its way onto his cheeks. "Sorry, I just… I guess I'm not used to seeing you without your mask on."

Beclem frowned and crossed his arms at the younger brother's reaction. Isaaru was still giggling in a way that was incredibly undignified.

"Wow," Maroda continued. "So that's what you look like."

"Lord Isaaru," a calm voice joined in the conversation. Beclem, Isaaru and Maroda turned towards the voice to find they had been joined by none other than the returned Praetor of New Yevon.

"Lord Baralai," Isaaru returned, a giggle or two still in his voice.

Baralai was around the same age as Beclem and Isaaru, but looked almost ten years younger. He was blessed with young-looking features, slightly pouted lips and beautiful eyes. His white blonde hair stood out strongly against his dark skin; the combination of the two of them causing him to look exotic and to many people, quite desirable.

"I know Maroda," Baralai commented, before looking pointedly at Beclem. "But I don't believe I've been introduced to your friend yet."

"Forgive me," Isaaru said, trying to stifle the last of his laughter. "May I introduce Beclem. He was sent here as a representative of the Youth League. Beclem; this is Lord Praetor Baralai, leader of New Yevon."

"My Lord," Beclem said, as he bowed before Baralai and kissed the offered hand. Isaaru found himself mesmerized by the action, as the momentarily forgotten incident between he and the ex-Crusader came back with painful clarity.

He was going to have to do something about this, Isaaru decided. What exactly he could do about it was another matter.

* * *

The night went on for many more hours, and Beclem found he was one of the last people to leave, mainly because he waited to head back to the Palace until Isaaru had finished everything and the two could walk back together in peace.

"What are you still doing here?" Isaaru asked Beclem as he practically ran over to him. "I wouldn't have thought that you would have so much interest in this sort of thing, or that you would enjoy it enough to stay this long."

"I was waiting for you," Beclem answered quietly.

"It wasn't that bad was it?" Isaaru asked the other man. "You and Baralai seemed to get along rather well."

Beclem nodded, finding he had to agree with that. Despite the fact that he was an ardent supporter of the Youth League, he had found the leader of New Yevon to be instantly likeable. There was no falseness around Baralai; no assuming, pompous manner, or demand for any more respect than he would be given if he were a normal person, nor was he overly friendly and eager like Maroda.

Baralai _was_ likeable, but he was definitely no Isaaru in Beclem's eyes. The memory of Isaaru's suggestion that they should dance came back to him, and he wistfully gazed out at the dance floor, wishing for a moment that they could.

"Are you all right?" Isaaru asked, noticing the look on Beclem's face.

"I'm fine," Beclem answered. "I was just wishing for the impossible."

Isaaru smiled gently at Beclem, before taking a quick look around them and grabbing Beclem's hand in his own.

He strode quite purposefully to the other side of the room, dragging Beclem along with him, and pressed a panel on the wall which looked completely indistinguishable from the rest of the wall to Beclem's eyes. Sure enough though it opened, sliding up to let the two men outside.

"Where are we going?" Beclem asked.

"It is a secret path back to the palace," Isaaru answered. "It leads back to the chamber that contains the entrance to Via Infinito."

The ex-Summoner completely stopped then, glancing around them for a moment as though to make sure they were alone, before turning around to face his companion and grabbing Beclem's other hand in his own. Isaaru moved the other man's hand to rest on his shoulder, and wrapped his arm around Beclem's waist, pulling him closer.

"What are you doing?" Beclem objected.

"I saw the way you were looking at everyone else on the dance floor," Isaaru said. "You wanted to dance but knew that you could not dance with anyone that you like without causing an absolute scandal, so I am going to dance with you now, here, where no-one can complain about it."

Beclem looked at their surroundings. They were standing in a pathway between the two buildings, no wider than a couple of metres and cobbled in a plain brown rock. The stars and moon could be seen overhead though, and here and there plants had grown through neglect of this area of the palace. It wasn't a dance floor, but it had a certain charm to it.

"But…" Beclem began to object, but Isaaru silenced him with a finger on his lips.

"You cannot get in trouble for this," Isaaru said. "Because I am still normal and all this is, is someone teaching a friend how to dance. All right?"

Beclem nodded, and let Isaaru guide him into the first couple of steps. They moved backwards and forwards, round and round to music that no-one else could hear. Beclem had never learned how to dance before; he could never have been bothered with it since he knew that he would never want to dance with a woman. At first he found the stepping back a little awkward, but after a few moments of Isaaru's gentle guidance it became almost as natural to him as walking or battling.

"And then a dip," Isaaru said as he guided Beclem into the more difficult manoeuvre.

Beclem let out a laugh as he was thrown back, and then was quickly silenced as Isaaru pulled him up to stand close against him once more.

Isaaru smiled and let his arm fall from around Beclem's waist.

"That is the first time I have ever heard you laugh," he commented. "Not snigger, but genuinely laugh. You should do it more often. It suits you."

Beclem couldn't help but smile back at Isaaru.

The ex-Summoner sighed and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly, before gesturing to the other wall.

Beclem nodded to the unasked question and walked beside Isaaru. The door was pushed open and the two found themselves, as predicted, in the entrance to Via Infinito.

There was an unexpectedly stale scent in the air inside the chamber, and Beclem grimaced. Isaaru closed the door behind them both, and Beclem began to frown as he spotted the source of the horrible smell only a few metres away from the two men.

"What is it?" Isaaru asked as soon as he noticed the look on Beclem's face.

Beclem took a couple of very slow and cautious steps towards a corner of the chamber, the look of distress on his face growing as he moved closer to the object of his focus. Isaaru's eyes followed the other man's path, and centred on the dark shadows in the corner.

Wait… That wasn't only shadow. Some of it was blood, and there, in the corner, slashed open by something sharp, like a sword or more frighteningly accurate, by a set of long and deadly claws, lay the answer to more than one of Isaaru's questions over the past couple of days.

"That's not…" Isaaru gasped. "It can't be."

Beclem knelt down and leaned just a little closer to the two damaged and furry bodies. "It is," he answered. "Beclem and Isaaru."

"I'm sorry," Isaaru said, finding his warm mood of before had completely disappeared. "I mean, I don't like monkeys at all, but they certainly didn't deserve this."

He walked over and placed a hand on Beclem's shoulder in comfort. "I know you were attached to them. I'll have someone clean them up, and we will bury them tomorrow if you like."

Beclem wasn't paying much attention to Isaaru though. Rather, his focus was still on the animals' dead bodies.

"What do you think did this?" he asked Isaaru. He was trying to act strong, but Isaaru could hear the slight breaking in voice as fear crept in. "It looks like claws."

"It may have been a fiend," Isaaru admitted, his hand tightening its grip on Beclem's shoulder. "Just remember Beclem; many fiends have claws, not only one."

Beclem nodded and left the monkeys lying in the corner of the room together. Isaaru ushered him out of the room in an effort to get rid of the cold chill that had gripped them both. Beclem spared one last look back in the direction of the entrance to Via Infinito as they left the room, and shivered.


	11. Cloister Ten

**AN:** Hmm... I wonder if anyone is reading this story any more. Pity, cause it's starting to get to the good bit now.

**Cloister Ten**

The monkeys were given a proper burial, as Isaaru had promised. Two small stones marked the place where they rested beneath the bare ground at the back of the Palace.

Isaaru knew he should have been at least a little bit sad, if only for the human Beclem's sake, but his mind was much too busy to be worried about things like pity at that moment.

Isaaru's new rooms were right across the hall from Beclem's, and eventually Beclem sought him out there, looking for the simplest form of comfort available; simple companionship.

They didn't say a word to one another, merely nodding to acknowledge one another's presence, and that was all either of them needed. Beclem had never been in Isaaru's old or new rooms before for more than a few seconds, and he wandered around until he came to a photograph of Isaaru and his two younger brothers, looking a few years younger than they were now.

They were all smiling, although Beclem could tell Isaaru's expression was forced, and were standing on a peaceful looking dock somewhere.

"That was back when I had just started my journey as a Summoner," Isaaru told Beclem. "I grew up in Kilika, and that is where I also received my first aeon."

"Your hair was longer then," Beclem noticed. "Why did you cut it?"

"Have you ever tried growing long hair?" Isaaru asked him. "It gets annoying sometimes as it is; always tangling itself up and being difficult."

There was something in Beclem's expression then that made Isaaru consider growing his hair longer again. That reaction in itself was enough to frustrate the ex-Summoner.

He shouldn't have cared what Beclem thought of his hair. He shouldn't have cared whether Beclem wanted to dance or not last night.

Unless of course he was attracted to or in love with Beclem, and then it was completely understandable. He just wished that he knew for sure whether this was attraction, love, or just a ridiculously strong bond of friendship.

He had already thought of one way he could easily find out, but that could…

His thoughts were interrupted as Baralai appeared at his door.

"I hope I'm not disturbing you," Baralai said, glancing between Isaaru and Beclem.

"Not at all," Beclem answered for the both of them.

"We called a meeting to discuss the finer details of what's been happening while I've been gone," Baralai explained. "You should be there."

"All right," Isaaru answered. "I'll be there in a second."

Isaaru waited until Baralai was gone, before making a spur of the moment decision. He walked over to Beclem, who was still staring at the old photograph, and whispered in his ear.

"Meet me in Cloister Zero at noon," he told Beclem, before walking out of the room.

Beclem froze for a couple of moments as a shiver ran down his entire body from the warmth of Isaaru's body and breath being so close to his own.

When that warmth had completely disappeared though, he began to wonder what could prompt Isaaru to ask him for such a meeting. Was the ex-Summoner regretting letting Beclem get close to him? Had the dance last night just been Isaaru's way of saying sorry and goodbye? The only reason Beclem could think of for a meeting such as this was his arrest or execution.

He would go to his death bravely though, he decided. He glanced at the clock to find he still had a couple of hours before it was noon. There was only thing he needed to do before then.

* * *

"Hello Beclem," Lucil greeted him. "Just the person I wanted to talk to." 

"Hello Lucil," Beclem said, trying to smile as he did. "Elma," he nodded at the darker woman in greeting.

"I still can't get over the fact that you're not wearing Chappu's helmet anymore!" Elma said excitedly.

"It feels so strange actually getting to see your facial expressions."

"Hmm…" Beclem growled, crossing his arms in impatience.

"Have you made any progress in Via Infinito lately?" Lucil asked him. For a moment Beclem considered telling the two women about the incident with the monkeys, but decided against it.

He hadn't even been able to summon the courage to tell them about the encounter with Chappu. All he had told them was that he had broken his helmet in a fight against a strong fiend. Besides that, Isaaru had been right; it might have been a fiend, but that didn't mean it had been Chappu that had killed the monkeys.

"No," Beclem answered after a moment's thought. "We haven't."

"How was the ball last night?" Elma asked.

"Fine," Beclem told her.

"So that means that Lord Baralai is once more in charge of Bevelle, correct?" Lucil checked.

"Correct."

"Good then," Lucil said, smiling warmly at Beclem. "How would you like to come back to headquarters then?"

"What?" Beclem exclaimed.

"Well; Isaaru isn't Praetor any more," Lucil explained. "So Maroda can go back to being our contact in Bevelle again.."

"The only reason we sent you," Elma added, "was because Maroda was too close to Isaaru to be able to give a proper report. With Baralai back in power, Maroda should be fine. That means that you can come back to Headquarters now!"

"Is that an order?" Beclem asked; his response shocking both women. They looked at one another for guidance, before staring at Beclem; surprise and confusion written plainly on their faces.

"You want to stay?" Lucil asked, double-checking to make sure she had heard Beclem correctly.

"If I could."

"We'll look into it," Lucil assured him, confusion still written plainly on her face. "Stay in contact until then."

"Will do," Beclem said, and switched the Commsphere off before the two women could ask him why he was so eager to stay.

* * *

Beclem hesitated at the entrance to Via Infinito, wondering if this would indeed be his last few minutes as a free man. He glanced at his watch; it was already ten minutes past noon. He had been debating with himself about whether this was such a good idea for over half an hour. 

He took a deep breath, calmed himself down, and promised to himself that he would go and face his death, if that's what this was, with his head held high. He stepped onto the transportation glyph, and then put one foot back, the sign for going to Cloister Zero.

Isaaru was already there waiting for him, and had begun pacing across the chamber in impatience. He stopped when Beclem entered, and smiled at him.

There was something strange about the expression on Isaaru's face. It was almost like the ex-Summoner was nervous about something. There were no guards around, so Beclem forced himself to relax. If he wasn't being arrested, then he didn't know why he was in Via Infinito, but undoubtedly Isaaru would soon tell him.

Isaaru approached Beclem, and stood before him for a couple of seconds, fidgeting with his hands in a way that made Beclem sure that the other man was nervous.

"I need your help with something," Isaaru told him.

Isaaru's hands reached out and grabbed Beclem's, and the next thing he knew, Beclem felt Isaaru's lips thrust onto his own. At first Beclem was too shocked to even close his eyes. Soon his eyelids slid shut however, and he let himself give in to the pleasure of this; his first ever kiss.

He moved his lips against Isaaru's, rejoicing in every small sensation. His arms had soon wrapped around Isaaru's neck and shoulders, instinctively pulling Isaaru closer to him. It didn't register that Isaaru was supposed to be normal. All that mattered at that moment was this intense feeling between them.

Isaaru's hands wrapped around Beclem, pulling him right against the ex-Summoner.

Beclem moaned into Isaaru's mouth as he felt their bodies press against one another, making Isaaru start and pull back from the kiss.

Isaaru looked down at Beclem with what appeared to be confusion, before pulling away from the embrace all together.

"I'm sorry," Isaaru said. "I didn't mean for that to happen. I just… sorry."

With that he ran out of Via Infinito, leaving a rather shocked Beclem wondering what exactly had just happened between them.

* * *

This was bad, Isaaru though. That was not how it was supposed to happen. 

"Lord Isaaru," Baralai greeted him when he reached the meeting room once more.

"I'm sorry my break ran longer than it was supposed to," Isaaru said, bowing deeply. "I had to take care of something, and it took a little while longer than anticipated."

"That's all right," Baralai said. "Some of the other officials aren't even back here yet."

Isaaru took a seat at the table and just thought seriously about what had happened.

It had been a simple enough experiment in theory. He would kiss Beclem, find out that he didn't enjoy it whatsoever, and then he would never have to worry about his sexuality again.

He wasn't supposed to enjoy it.

He had though. He had found it to be the most wonderful, exhilarating experience he had ever been lucky enough to be a part of. Now though, there was the question of what he was going to do next. He wondered what a relationship with Beclem would be like, and whether he was brave enough to take that next step. It wouldn't be worth it if this was only attraction, but he wasn't sure how to make sure it was love.

He tried to imagine what life would be like without Beclem, and realised that he could no longer picture spending even so much as one day without the ex-Crusader's company. The lead-up to the Ball had been bad enough. If Beclem was to suddenly return to Youth League headquarters, then Isaaru knew he would have to eventually give in and follow the other man all the way back to Mushroom Rock Road.

He would die for Beclem, even though he knew a pledge like that didn't seem so impressive when it came from him. He would kill for him, which was probably saying more than the other pledge could in his case. He would be willing to break every taboo and law that Beclem wanted him to. What's more, if Beclem wanted him to live, then he would do that too, no matter how much it hurt. If that wasn't love, then what was?

Maybe a relationship was possible, even though it was technically breaking the law. Technically, using machina or questioning the laws or leaders of Yevon were still crimes, but no-one paid any attention to those laws anymore. Maybe homosexuality was the same.

"Lord Isaaru; are you all right?" someone asked him. Apparently the meeting had started and someone had noticed the vacant expression on his face.

"Sorry," Isaaru apologised. "I am fine. I just have a lot to think about at the moment."

The meeting continued, and Isaaru drifted off once more. A thought gripped him as he realised he hadn't taken into account one of the most crucial factors for a relationship with Beclem.

What if Beclem didn't want a relationship with Isaaru? He couldn't just assume that he would want to be with Isaaru simply because Isaaru was the first man that had ever fallen in love with Beclem. Maybe Isaaru wasn't Beclem's type.

A painful knot formed in Isaaru's stomach, confirming without a doubt that he was in love; otherwise he wouldn't be so afraid of having his heart broken.

"Perhaps you should invite Beclem to the next meeting," someone said, immediately drawing Isaaru's attention back to the conversation. Isaaru realised that the speaker was addressing him.

"It would certainly show how much our bond with the Youth League has grown," Isaaru said, hoping that this would be an appropriate response.

"I thought you would agree with me," Dorian said, much to Isaaru's relief. "Then he can report straight back to the Youth League headquarters instead of having to confer with you, Lord Isaaru."

Isaaru froze. Had he unintentionally destroyed one of his few legitimate reasons to be spending time with Beclem?

"I would still like to work through Via Infinito with him," Isaaru said.

"Yes," Dorian laughed. "We have all noticed that the two of you seem to be growing quite close."

Only one face at the table didn't smile at this comment. Maroda, Captain of the Bevelle guard, and the elder of Isaaru's two younger brothers, frowned.

* * *

Maroda cornered his older brother after the meeting. Isaaru was disappointed to see that there was a frown on the dark male's face.. 

"What's wrong with you?" Maroda demanded.

"I'm fine," Isaaru answered.

"Then why were you acting so strange in that meeting?" Maroda shouted. "These past few days I've barely been able to recognise you!"

It was then that Maroda reached for Isaaru's arm, pushing the fabric up and uncovering the skin on the ex-Summoner's wrist.

"Some of these are new," Maroda cried, as he stared at the pale scars on Isaaru's wrist. "You've been… been trying to…"

"Don't worry," Isaaru said, placing a hand on Maroda's shoulder in comfort and squeezing gently. "I haven't even picked up a knife in two weeks."

"What about before that?" Maroda hissed.

"Fine," Isaaru sighed. "I did try to kill myself, but Beclem stopped me. I have no intention of killing myself any more. I promise you."

Isaaru reached to Maroda's face and pulled their heads together so that their foreheads touched in a symbol of their closeness.

"I promise you," Isaaru repeated.

Maroda sighed, pulled back and stared at his brother.

"Beclem stopped you?" he repeated Isaaru's words. Isaaru nodded. "So that's why the two of you are so close now?"

"He understands me," Isaaru explained. "And I think I understand him."

Maroda nodded glumly and walked off, leaving Isaaru to stand by himself and wonder about their short conversation.

"He understands me," Isaaru repeated to himself.

Beclem's face flashed before his mind and he decided that it was time to find the ex-Crusader. He couldn't run away from this particular problem forever.

* * *

Beclem stared at the end of the Cloister, his eyes barely even moving. He wasn't even seeing what was in front of him at the moment. The kiss played in his mind over and over again, as it had since Isaaru had left Via Infinito, and Beclem continued to wonder why the other man had done what he had. 

So far, several reasons had come to mind, none of them at all likely. He wanted to hope that it had been genuine; that Isaaru had enjoyed it; but then why would the ex-Summoner have apologised?

Footsteps echoed across the Cloister, and Beclem turned his head behind him to see that Isaaru had joined him in Via Infinito.

"What are you doing down here?" Isaaru asked him. "Have you stayed down here the whole time?"

"Ever since you…" Beclem answered, finding himself unable to finish the sentence. "Yes. I've been thinking."

"You haven't eaten anything?" Isaaru asked, before shaking his head. He walked over to where Beclem was and sat down on the floor next to him. "Do you realise how long it has been? The sky is starting to get dark outside."

Beclem didn't answer and continued to stare pointlessly in front of him.

"I am sorry if I have upset you in any way," Isaaru said. "That was not my intention. I just needed your help with a little… experiment," he explained.

"An experiment?" Beclem asked, looking towards Isaaru with doubt in his eyes.

"Yes," Isaaru said. "I had never even considered homosexuality as a possibility before I met you, and when you told me about it, I had a lot to consider. I needed to make sure that I was still normal, and I thought that I could prove it to myself by kissing you. If I did not enjoy it then I would know I was not like you and could get on with my life."

Beclem sighed and resumed staring at nothing. At least Isaaru knew he was normal now, leaving Beclem with the depressing knowledge that he could now forget about such foolish notions such as hope.

"I never thought that I would actually enjoy it; let alone that I would like it as much as I did," Isaaru said, making Beclem start and turn to stare at him. His heart began racing, and he hoped against all hope that he hadn't misheard Isaaru.

"I did some thinking over the past few hours as well," Isaaru continued, smiling at Beclem as he did so. "And I came to the realisation that I have fallen in love with you."

Beclem froze. The only rationalisation he could find for this was that he had fallen asleep in the cold chambers of Via Infinito and was now dreaming.

"I know that this may sound a little forward, but… could I kiss you again?" Isaaru asked shyly; a small blush forming on his cheeks.

Beclem could only nod dumbly, making Isaaru smile widely. They both leaned forwards at the same time, bringing their lips together once more. Their arms moved to wrap around one another almost immediately, pulling each other closer so that soon Beclem was practically lying on top of Isaaru.

Isaaru's tongue soon lapped at Beclem's lips and he opened them submissively, letting the other man explore the inside of his mouth. There was warmth forming inside him and growing with every movement Isaaru made, and it was a hundred times better than any alcohol or pleasure that he had ever felt before, and twice as addictive.

One of Isaaru's hands brushed a weak spot on Beclem's back, and he moaned in appreciation. Isaaru smiled against Beclem's mouth and caressed the same spot again, loving the feeling of Beclem curling closer towards him and moaning in pleasure.

Beclem's hand moved to tangle in Isaaru's hair, and soon he had accidentally pulled out the tie keeping Isaaru's long tresses in place. His silky hair soon spilled over his shoulders and through Beclem's finger.

With every second Isaaru was forced to give in and lean a little further back, until the two of them fell against the floor. Beclem was now half lying and half sitting on Isaaru, but their lips had still not left one another's.

One of Isaaru's hands continued to explore Beclem's back, while the other moved to entwine with Beclem's. They finally pulled back from one another after what seemed like a comfortable eternity, and Beclem lay down on Isaaru, tucking his head in the space between Isaaru's shoulder and neck. They were both panting, and they lay there for a few seconds as they simply waited for their breathing to return to normal.

"I love you too," Beclem eventually whispered in Isaaru's ear. His hand brought Isaaru's up to his mouth, and he kissed the other man's fingers lovingly.

Isaaru smiled, and placed a soft kiss on Beclem's forehead. Beclem simply stared at their interlocked hands for a moment, before suddenly sobering and frowning.

"You're not doing this just so you can die are you?" Beclem asked Isaaru.

"What are you talking about?" Isaaru asked in return.

"We could die," Beclem said sadly. "The punishment for being involved in a relationship such as ours is death. They couldn't kill us for just kissing, but if we were to ever take this further then they could…"

Isaaru frowned as he felt a burning behind his eyes that signalled the formation of tears.

"This is not fair," Isaaru whispered. "I finally have something that I want to live for and Yevon says I must die for it."

"Do you still want to do this?" Beclem asked him.

"Of course I do! I have never had anything that I have been so afraid of loosing," Isaaru answered, surprising Beclem by the amount of passion behind his words. "We will just have to be careful. We have the perfect meeting place here."

Beclem took another quick look around the Cloister and smiled. Soon a low rumbling noise erupted between them and Beclem blushed. Isaaru chuckled as he realised the source of the noise.

"Perhaps we should get you something to eat," he suggested, poking Beclem's stomach gently. It rumbled gently in response, and Beclem got to his feet, Isaaru quickly following.

Their hands linked as they began walking back to the entrance. They paused for a moment before they reached the glyph, and stopped for one last kiss before their feet touched the transportation glyph, and their hands fell to their sides once more.


	12. Cloister Eleven

**AN:** This chapter is pretty much just fluff and smut; you have been warned. Also, a huge thanks and shout-out to fightingcomet for letting me know that at least someone is enjoying this story; this chapter is dedicated to you.

**Cloister Eleven**

"Did you realise that I lost a hair tie because of you?" were the first words Beclem heard when he awoke late the next morning. His blankets were pulled off quite suddenly, and he shivered as his half-naked body was deprived of its current source of warmth.

"I am quite serious Beclem," his attacker continued. "I returned to Cloister Zero earlier this morning and it was gone. I didn't even realise I had left it behind until this morning, and now some fiend is probably running around with my hair tie."

"Why are you so worried?" Beclem moaned. "All your hair ties are plain and cheap anyway. Now give me back my blanket. I'm cold."

"But that one had sentimental value after yesterday," Isaaru said. Beclem soon felt a warmth at his back that was definitely not his blanket.

"What are you doing?" he asked, as Isaaru's arms snaked around his stomach.

"Keeping you warm," Isaaru whispered, before giving Beclem's ear a gentle nibble.

"Are you crazy!" Beclem objected. "They could catch us. Hey!"

Beclem's protests went completely ignored as Isaaru got back to his feet, pulling Beclem with him. Beclem soon found himself flung over Isaaru's shoulder, a rather uncomfortable bone digging into his stomach.

"What the fuck do you think you're doing!" he screamed, just a little loudly.

"Ssshh," Isaaru shushed Beclem. "I'm taking you somewhere a little more private. How does Cloister Zero sound?"

"I'm not even dressed yet," Beclem objected.

Isaaru just smiled even more enthusiastically than he had been, before plonking Beclem back on his bed and finding a place to lean on one of Beclem's walls.

"Fine," he said, still smiling. "Get dressed then."

"With you in here?"

"Yes," Isaaru answered. "Why not?"

Isaaru soon ran out of the room as Beclem threw a boot at him in playful attack, chuckling as he did. He turned around just in time to see the door slam shut behind him. When he faced the rest of the hall once more he realised he had almost ran straight into his younger brother.

"Maroda!" Isaaru exclaimed. "How are you this morning?"

"All right," Maroda said, noting how flushed Isaaru seemed to be from laughing. "What's up with you this morning?"

"What do you mean?" Isaaru asked, still grinning from ear to ear.

"I haven't seen you this excited or happy since…" Maroda paused for a moment to think. "Since ever!" he concluded.

"I just… well," Isaaru said, still grinning. "I… you know…" Maroda just stared at his older brother, wondering what could have possibly brought on a spout of such uncharacteristically cheerful behaviour.

"I just love the world this morning!" Isaaru concluded, throwing his arms up to emphasis the statement as he walked away from Maroda.

"By the way Beclem," Isaaru said, knocking Beclem's door as he walked past. "You are invited to attend the council meeting today. It starts in half an hour."

A string of curses followed Isaaru from the direction of Beclem's room as he walked off towards the meeting room.

"See you at the council meeting," Isaaru said cheerily, waving back at Maroda as he left.

Maroda waved back nervously.

"What in Sin's name…?" he pondered.

* * *

Beclem checked to make sure that there weren't any important councillors around before turning to talk to Isaaru. 

"Are the meeting's always that boring?" he asked.

"Not always," Isaaru answered. "You just happened to be witness to a particularly boring one."

Isaaru started to walk incredibly slowly, and Beclem fell back to walk beside him. Isaaru soon stopped completely. Beclem did similar, wondering what it was exactly that Isaaru was planning, because judging from the look on the ex-Summoner's face, he was definitely planning something.

Isaaru looked around them for a couple of moments. Beclem wondered what Isaaru was looking at. The hallway they were in was completely empty.

Suddenly Isaaru's hand tightened around Beclem's wrist. Isaaru opened the door nearest to them, and pulled Beclem inside with him. Beclem found that they were in an incredibly small room that looked like it was currently being used for storage.

"Wha…?" Beclem began to ask, but his lips were smothered with Isaaru's before he could complete his question, and before the door could even finish closing.

Isaaru wrapped his arms tightly around Beclem's lower back, pressing against him so that before he knew it Beclem was stuck with his back pushed against the wall. He wrapped his arms around Isaaru's shoulders, trying to pull his mouth impossibly closer.

Isaaru pulled back away from Beclem as suddenly as he had kissed him.

"I have been wanting to do that all morning," Isaaru said.

"No complaints here," Beclem said as Isaaru moved to plant a trail of soft kisses and tiny bites down his neck. "Isaaru…" Beclem whispered, as both Isaaru's lips and his hands began travelling lower.

"Ssh…" Isaaru said, placing a finger on Beclem's lips in an effort to silence him. "We wouldn't want anyone to hear us."

Isaaru fell silent as Beclem kissed the finger Isaaru had put to his lips, before taking it between his lips and sucking on it gently. Isaaru removed the digit and replaced it with his lips, enthusiastically kissing Beclem.

Soon light flooded the room, and Beclem and Isaaru pulled away from one another immediately. They looked in shock at the open door and the person standing there.

"Um…" Baralai began, a blush quickly forming on his cheeks. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to interrupt anything."

Isaaru's hands were still on Beclem. Their faces were still only inches away from one another. There was no way that Baralai could think that they had been doing anything but what they had been doing, yet he didn't seem at all disturbed by it.

"Are we in trouble?" Isaaru asked.

"What?" Baralai said, turning around just before he had been about to leave the room. "No; you're not in trouble. Might I suggest you find a more private spot for this though? This supply cupboard is used more often then you would think."

"You mean you're not at all disturbed by this?" Beclem asked.

"No," Baralai said, smiling gently at them both. "You see, I had this Al Bhed friend a few years back. The Al Bhed are a lot more open about this sort of thing. Let's just say that my friend and I used to be _very_ close. I couldn't very well convict you of something when I'm guilty of the same thing."

Beclem and Isaaru pulled back very slowly from one another as Baralai closed the door, and then both sighed in relief.

"That was close," Beclem said.

"I am glad it was Baralai and not someone else," Isaaru added, before placing a soft kiss on Beclem's cheek. "I will see you in Cloister Zero again tonight then?"

"Tonight," Beclem answered with a smile, "and every other night that I can make it."

* * *

For two weeks life went on as normal. The residents of Bevelle Palace began to become accustomed to this new joyful mood of Isaaru's, and to Beclem's newfound politeness. 

And every night two people met in Via Infinito's Cloister Zero, and for an hour or two, forgot that that rest of the world existed.

* * *

One night Beclem arrived in Cloister Zero to find that Isaaru was not only already there, but had laid out a blanket on the cold floor and had brought red wine and glasses for two. 

"If I didn't know any better," Beclem said; one hand on hip. "I'd say you were trying to seduce me."

"Are you complaining?" Isaaru asked, a mischievous grin suddenly finding its way onto his face.

"Not at all," Beclem replied.

Isaaru offered a glass of wine to Beclem, but it was ignored, Beclem finding his hands instead too preoccupied with Isaaru's neck and waist.

Beclem leaned in slowly but deliberately, capturing Isaaru's lips with his own.

The glass dropped from Isaaru's hand and landed on the floor beside them, spilling its contents in a puddle of red that stood out against the pale blue marble.

There was a strange, fierce passion between their lips that hadn't been there before. If either of them pulled away, then it felt that the whole world would fall out from beneath them; the human body's need for oxygen be damned.

Isaaru found his hand moving to rest on Beclem's hip, sneaking in to make a space between his trousers and his shirt so that he could feel the warm skin beneath. Beclem let out a soft moan at the touch, and the hand that had moved up to tangle in Isaaru's long hair attempted to pull Isaaru's mouth harder against his own.

Their other hands reached up to find one another; their fingers entwining within and around each other. Isaaru's other hand crept around to rest on Beclem's back, beneath his clothing.

Beclem gasped as Isaaru caressed that particularly delicate spot the other man had found, involuntarily breaking the kiss.

"So this is it, huh?" Beclem whispered with an enthusiastic grin on his face as he felt Isaaru's body reacting in the same way that his was.

"Yes," Isaaru answered with a smile, before pressing his lips against Beclem's once again.

They gradually pulled one another down to the floor. Isaaru had already removed Beclem's shirt by the time his bare back touched the marble; the blanket having been completely forgotten and left to lay unused where Isaaru had placed it.

Isaaru's outer robe practically fell off as soon as Beclem slid his hands beneath it, pooling around their waists and becoming their new make-shift blanket. A few more minutes saw their other clothes lying with it.

Isaaru lay above Beclem for a moment, pulling back to stare at Beclem's face for a while, his eyes asking a question that he couldn't with words. Beclem caught the look, and simply nodded once, smiling warmly at Isaaru. He was ready for this.

Isaaru moved slightly, Beclem spreading his legs submissively as the other man positioned himself, placing a trail of kisses down Beclem's jaw and neck as he did so. Isaaru found his way inside Beclem, and the ex-Crusader moaned loudly as he found himself caught in a mixture of pleasure and pain that was completely intoxicating.

It was an adventure, an exploration, as they became lost in one another, and Isaaru found that moving just like this made Beclem throw his head back and moan in pleasure, and Beclem discovered that caressing a certain spot that was part way between Isaaru's leg and other more sensitive areas made Isaaru's smile in a way he had only ever hoped he could make another man smile.

Isaaru barely made a noise, but Beclem found that he couldn't stop moaning. They slowly rocked in sync with one another; their bodies sliding against, around and inside one another. Their hands continued to caress each other's bodies in every place imaginable, until Beclem's hands finally came to rest on Isaaru's hips, pulling the other man further inside him, and Isaaru's moved down to caress Beclem's more sensitive areas.

With every movement either of them made, they found themselves slowly loosing more and more of themselves, until finally, they were one another, and their minds and bodies collapsed into one. As one they found a place higher than the sky, brighter than the sun and a pleasure more powerful than Sin itself.

Then it disappeared, and they were themselves once again. Their surroundings turned back, once again, into the pale blue marble of Via Infinito. Pyreflies flew overhead, and the ambient noise of Via Infinito, which always managed to sound like a mismatched chorus returned to their ears, but tonight it was the most beautiful noise either of them had ever heard.

Isaaru captured Beclem's lips again, and smiled at the man that he could now, without a doubt, call his lover.

"I love you," they said at the same time as they parted. A short laugh followed their mutual confessions, before Isaaru let his head rest against Beclem's chest for a while.

"Congratulations," Beclem said after he had remembered how to breathe properly. "We are now officially criminals."

Isaaru sighed against Beclem's neck, and wrapped an arm tightly around Beclem's waist.

"I wish we could just lie here like this for a while," he whispered.

"Me too," Beclem replied. He took one look at his lover's downhearted face and melted. He placed a gently kiss on Isaaru's forehead and sighed. "I guess a couple of minutes couldn't hurt."

"Maybe one day," Isaaru whispered. "We'll be able to fall asleep together like this."

"I hope so."

They lay in one another's arms in silence for a couple of seconds, simply listening to one another's breathing and heartbeat, before Isaaru spoke up.

"So was that," he took a deep breath, before continuing. "Was that the first time you have…"

"I had never even kissed anyone until you came along," Beclem confessed.

"Me either," Isaaru admitted, placing a tender kiss on Beclem's neck.

Beclem breathed in deeply right against Isaaru's neck, making his lover shiver. "You smell so good," he suddenly announced. "It's so addictive."

"I smell nice?" Isaaru giggled.

"Yeah," Beclem answered. "I can't even describe it, but it's the most intoxicating smell in the world."

Isaaru pondered this statement for a moment, before taking a deep breath near Beclem's neck, sighing in pleasure as he pulled away.

"I see what you mean," he concluded. "Very nice."

The two men did no more than talk, occasionally planting a soft kiss or two on one another's skin, but they didn't leave Cloister Zero, or pull apart from one another for over an hour.


	13. Cloister Twelve

**AN: **You wanted a quick update; it just so happens that I am able to give you that. :)

**Cloister Twelve**

"How long has it been since we met?" Beclem asked one day as he lay on the cold floor of Via Infinito, his head tucked comfortably underneath Isaaru's chin.

Beclem's lover paused for a moment as he thought.

"Two months?" he guessed, "and it's been exactly one month since we first kissed."

"When we first met," Beclem continued. "Did you ever think we would have ended up like this? I wouldn't have; not in a million years."

"I've told you," Isaaru sighed, playing with Beclem's hair. "I didn't even know this was a possibility before I met you. I am so glad that I did though; so wonderfully glad that you came into my life."

"Me too," Beclem sighed.

They moved their heads closer to one another at the same time; their lips meeting softly in a now familiar bliss. So far today they had done nothing but talk and hold one another, but now the fire returned.

Isaaru's hands moved to rest on Beclem's hips. Beclem snuck one hand up beneath Isaaru's shirt to caress the skin beneath, making them both smile into the kiss.

* * *

Yuna paused at the entrance to Via Infinito, double checking to make sure that her ammunition was ready. It was an odd time to continue her exploration of Via Infinito, but she hadn't been able to sleep.

The other members of the Gullwings didn't know that she was down here. She had only told her lover Tidus, and all he knew was that she needed to think, and she was gradually coming to realise that she found it easiest to think while she was ridding the world of dangerous fiends.

There had been a series of strange deaths in Bevelle, and the Gullwings had been asked to help discover the reason behind these deaths. As far as Yuna was able to guess, the deaths seemed to be fiend related, but she was beginning to wonder if she would ever discover anything more. It seemed that lately as soon as anyone had even the smallest problem, they turned to Yuna and the Gullwings for guidance. She didn't mind helping out, but there was only so much one woman could do, and she was afraid she was about to reach breaking point, hence why she was now travelling to Via Infinito.

Travelling to the lowest levels of the labyrinth would be dangerous by herself, so when she stepped onto the transportation glyph she placed one foot slightly backwards, aiming to start again from Cloister Zero.

She strode confidently down this particular chamber, knowing that there were no fiends to be found in the first Cloister. She passed the familiar crossroad, glanced over casually, and screamed.

* * *

Beclem and Isaaru immediately pulled apart when they heard a scream echo throughout the chamber. They looked around to see the High Summoner Lady Yuna staring at them as though she was only a couple seconds away from fainting.

"Lady Yuna," Isaaru tried to talk to her, but she was gone before he could say anything else, fleeing out of Via Infinito.

"Damn it," Isaaru cursed as he got to his feet, readjusting his clothes as quickly as he could. "Lady Yuna!"

He stopped as he realised there was no chance of catching her, and glanced back sadly at Beclem, who was still sitting on the floor, doing up the various buttons and buckles that Isaaru had been undoing only a few seconds earlier.

"What do we do now?" Isaaru asked Beclem.

"We run."

* * *

"But they can't be," Maroda objected as he ran towards Via Infinito next to Baralai. "My brother isn't like that!"

"Trust me," Baralai told him. "They are. If you can't accept that then I feel sorry for you."

"In Yevon's name," Maroda gasped. "You're not planning to arrest them at all, are you Praetor? You're planning on helping them to escape!"

"That's why I have to reach Via Infinito before any of the guards," Baralai insisted.

"I can't let you do that," Maroda argued.

"For Spira's sake!" Baralai cursed. "He's your own brother Maroda!"

"I have to know whether or not it's true," Maroda said. "I have to be able to believe that Isaaru's innocent and I need to hear it from his own mouth."

"You call being in love a crime!"

Maroda didn't answer; just kept running towards Via Infinito.

They reached the entrance to Via Infinito just as Beclem and Isaaru appeared on the transportation glyph. Maroda stared at their intertwined hands in shock and disgust, knowing now that everything Lady Yuna and Lord Baralai had said was true.

"Maroda. Praetor Baralai," Isaaru exclaimed.

"News does travel fast," Beclem commented, drawing his gun from its place on his hip. "I will use this," he said, his voice holding not quite as much conviction as he would have liked. "I will kill for this."

"Beclem," Isaaru pleaded, placing a hand on his lover's shoulder.

"Think Beclem," Baralai said softly. "The entire Palace has heard about this by now. You won't achieve anything by killing two people."

Beclem lowered his pistol, but kept it ready to fire if he needed it.

"Besides," Baralai added. "I'm here to help the two of you escape. I won't be able to defend you at all as things stand now. No-one will stand for it, but if the two of you lay low for a while I may be able to gather some support. These laws have needed changing for a while after all."

"Isaaru," Maroda cried. "Please tell me this isn't true! I don't care if you were holding hands before, or what Praetor Baralai said he saw. Just tell me that this isn't true and I'll believe you."

"I'm sorry Maroda," the older brother said, linking his hand with his lover's once more. "But I can't."

"Why?" Maroda screamed. "If you had to be more forward thinking about one thing, then why did it have to be this?"

"Sorry Maroda," Baralai told the Captain of the guards, "but I can't let you tell everyone how these two escaped."

"Take care of Pacce for me," Isaaru asked of his younger brother, right before he felt a sharp pain in the back of the neck and everything went black as he was forced into unconsciousness by a well-aimed knock from Baralai.

* * *

Baralai pushed the door to the secret pathway open, ushering the two men through.

"As you know," he told Isaaru. "This door can only close from this side. I'll take care of that for you. You can climb over the walls by using the vines if you're careful. Travel towards the back of the Palace. It will be difficult if the plants have grown over the gap between the buildings too much, but I'm sure you'll be able to make it. Take the first path on your right that you come to. You'll only just fit through there, but if you follow that for long enough, then you'll come to a wide space at the back of the Palace.

"It's as overgrown as everything else, but from there you're pretty much free to go wherever you want. It's fairly easy to get to Macalania Woods from there, or you can hide out in the lower parts of the city. After that, you're on your own. I think I should be able to talk some sense into your brother."

"Thank you Lord Baralai," Isaaru said. "I don't know whether we'll ever to be able to repay you for this kindness."

"Just stay alive for a little while longer, all right?" Baralai said, sliding the door shut behind them, just as a battalion of guards rounded the corner.

"They knocked Maroda out and then disappeared back into Via Infinito," Baralai lied, his voice a lot more calm than anyone would have expected. "You can follow them if you like, but I myself am rather disappointed that I was woken up for something as ordinary as this. They're not about to kill anyone, so I say we leave them be for now."

* * *

Beclem grunted as he hauled himself over the top of the wall and fell to the ground on the other side. Isaaru jumped down beside him, and the two of them stared at the path in front of them.

Not only was it completely overgrown with plants, but here and there were patches of enormous white sacks which resembled a cross between sacks of spider eggs and dandelions.

"Baralai didn't say anything about those being here," Beclem commented.

"What are they?" Isaaru asked, as he poked at one experimentally.

"I don't have a clue, but I say we leave them alone," Beclem decided. "Whatever they are, they don't look healthy."

They continued along the path, but soon found it blocked by an enormous clump of the strange white spheres.

"Don't worry," Isaaru said, as he brought his hands together and cast a fire spell on the blockage.

The white spheres exploded as soon as the fire touched them, bursting into a rain of white powdery spores. Isaaru covered his mouth with one of his long sleeves in an effort to make sure he didn't breathe any of the white substance in.

Beclem accidentally caught a breath of them though, and began to cough. He immediately turned pale. Isaaru held his breath as he paused to tear a strip of fabric off one of his sleeves and passed it to Beclem so that his lover could use it as a mask.

They forced their way through what remained of the spheres, their eyes watering due to the thickness of the white powder in the air. Eventually they came out of the largest mass of them, and soon found the tiny pathway Baralai had told them about.

It was as small as they had been warned. They would have to shuffle sideways to get through as the walls were so covered in plants and vines. There were still some of the white spheres, but these ones were only small, and Isaaru only had to destroy a couple of them for the two men to find the end of the path.

They both breathed a sigh of relief as they came to the open area. A couple of hundred metres away stood the edge of Macalania Woods, but one look at Beclem told Isaaru that they were in no condition to be travelling into the woods at that point in time.

Beclem's eyes were red, and he was sickly pale. He pulled the strip of fabric away from his mouth and smiled weakly at Isaaru. His legs began to shake, and Isaaru managed to wrap an arm around his torso to support him just before his legs gave out. Isaaru moved them both onto the ground, so that Beclem's head was resting in his lap.

"Don't feel so good," Beclem muttered.

"You don't look so good either," Isaaru joked, brushing Beclem's hair out of his face. He pulled his hand back as he realised how hot Beclem's forehead was.

"You're burning up," he told the other man. "Those white things must have been poisonous. I'll see what I can do to stop the illness, but I can't promise anything."

Isaaru closed his eyes, and began hoping that he could heal this strange poison which had entered Beclem's body. He had just begun to channel healing energy when his concentration was broken by a roaring noise above them.

"This is the Celsius," a voice coming from the large red ship above them announced. "You guys need a lift?"

* * *

"What happened to him?" a dark-skinned Al Bhed that had introduced himself as Buddy asked as he and Isaaru carried the now unconscious Beclem to the nearest bed.

"There were these strange…" Isaaru began. "I am not sure what I should call them. When they burst they let out a white powder. I am afraid that Beclem may have breathed some in."

They placed Beclem very gently onto a bed, and Buddy moved over to a small bar, and began talking to one of the strange blue creatures known as a hypello. Isaaru kneeled down beside his lover and began stroking Beclem's forehead softly. The man frowned in his sleep, and moaned softly.

"It's going to be fine," Isaaru said, more to himself than to the unconscious Beclem. "You are too strong to be beaten by something like this."

"So," Buddy started, as he returned to the bed, holding a small bottle of some sort of liquid in his hands. "Is it true? Are the two of you lovers?"

"Yes," Isaaru answered sadly.

Buddy shrugged.

"Seems like a pretty stupid reason for all those guards to be after you," he said, shaking the small bottle up and down. "You Yevonites have some pretty strange laws if you ask me."

Isaaru just smiled at the Al Bhed, knowing that he couldn't argue with the man's statement.

"Give this to him," Buddy told Isaaru, handing him the bottle. "It's nothing that powerful, but it tends to clear the body of most of the poisons we've come across."

"Thank you," Isaaru said.

"How's he doing?" a feminine voice said from the direction of the door Isaaru and Buddy had entered by.

Isaaru looked towards the door to see none other than Lady Yuna. He thought to scowl at the woman that had discovered their secret, but then he saw the sorrowful look on Yuna's face and smiled in greeting instead.

"He should be fine," Buddy answered for Isaaru. "An antidote and a bit of sleep and he should be as good as normal tomorrow."

"I find that warmth usually helps speed up the process as well," Yuna added with a smile. "I'm sorry about what happened," she told Isaaru. "I just saw the two of you and was well… a little shocked. I didn't realise it would have caused you so much trouble."

"I forgive you," Isaaru told her. "Beclem however is not usually so open to forgiveness I'm afraid, but he is getting a little more sociable and friendly, so who really knows?"

Yuna nodded and left the room.

"Well then," Buddy said as he jumped to his feet. "I'll leave the two of you be."

"Thankyou," Isaaru told the Al Bhed.

Buddy nodded, walked to the door and then turned around.

"And by the way," he added. "Welcome to the Celsius."


	14. Cloister Thirteen

**AN:** Hello again. This chapter is mostly just pointless fluff. Note that I said _mostly_. Isaaru seems to be getting a little bit aggressive. I honestly didn't mean for that to happen, but I think it works this way. Please enjoy the chapter.

**Cloister Thirteen**

Beclem awoke to find a warm blanket covering him, and an even warmer pair of arms wrapped around his torso. He nuzzled Isaaru's neck gently, wondering how he had been lucky enough to find himself in this predicament. The last thing he could remember was looking up at the sky to see a dark red shape hovering above him.

He sighed to himself, and gently nibbled on Isaaru's earlobe. This, he realised with a grin, was the first time they had ever been allowed to share a bed together. He would have preferred spending the night before in other circumstances than they had, but he certainly wasn't complaining. Maybe another day he would be permitted his simple wish.

Isaaru stirred in his sleep, and Beclem froze, not wanting to wake his lover. It was too late however, and Isaaru awoke with a quiet yawn that sounded more like a mewl, before wrapping his arms even more tightly around Beclem's body.

"Good morning Beclem," Isaaru whispered. "How are you feeling?"

"All right," Beclem answered. "I can't even feel the poison any more. Where are we?"

"On board the Celsius," Isaaru answered, just before placing a kiss on Beclem's neck.

"The Celsius?" Beclem questioned. "The Gullwings' airship?"

"Yes," Isaaru sighed. "Lady Yuna apologised last night. They picked us up from behind the Palace and gave you an antidote for that poison you inhaled."

"Hmm…." Beclem moaned against Isaaru's neck. He stayed that way for a while, just enjoying the simple pleasure of being able to lie in a bed with his lover, before sighing. "This is nice."

Isaaru chuckled, and placed another kiss on Beclem's neck which lasted much longer and which included several small nibbles. "Yes," he agreed, as his lips left Beclem's skin for just a second. "It is, isn't it?"

* * *

The bridge of the Celsius was a chaotic hub of energy when Beclem and Isaaru entered it later that morning.

"Look who's finally woken up," Buddy commented from his position at the navigating equipment.

"Good morning," Yuna said, nodding at the both of them.

"So is it true?" a blonde bundle of energy said as she raced up to them. This was Rikku, Yuna's young Al Bhed cousin, guardian and close friend, and also a legendary fighter, having accompanied Yuna both times the Summoner had saved Spira.

"It seems like a strange pairing if you ask me," another woman with dark hair and even darker leather clothing said as she sidled up to the two men. "I never would have seen it coming. You have nothing in common."

"You would be surprised," Isaaru said.

"Hmm…" the woman said, looking sideways at them as though she was still trying to figure out their relationship. Beclem and Isaaru had both met the third member of the infamous Gullwings trio before. Her name was Paine, and she was even more fierce a fighter than her two companions.

"What's going on up here?" another voice said from just behind Isaaru and Beclem. The two men looked behind them to discover a man of a few years younger than them both, with a kind face and blonde hair.

"Oh," Yuna exclaimed. "Sorry. You were just sleeping so soundly that I couldn't wake you up. Isaaru; Beclem; this is my fiancée Tidus."

"We've met," Isaaru said, smiling at the young man. Beclem acknowledged Tidus with a simple nod.

"Hi," Tidus said, waving to them. "How're you doing, Isaaru?"

"Tidus," Yuna continued. "You've obviously met Isaaru, and this is Beclem. We're letting them stay on the ship for a while."

"What I want to know is why!" a rather irate and heavily accented voice said from the pilot's seat of the Celsius.

"'Cause if we had left them there," Rikku said indignantly, "then the Yevonites would have killed them dummy!" She whacked the Al Bhed at the pilot's seat on the back of the head for emphasis.

"That is what I am not getting!" the man protested. "What did you two do, huh? I am the leader, and I say we are not going to carry any criminal type people on board this ship!"

"Sorry," Buddy told Beclem and Isaaru, as he grabbed the other Al Bhed around the shoulder in an effort to stop him from flinging around his arms so much. "This is Brother."

"He's your brother?" Beclem questioned. "The two of you don't look a thing alike."

"He's Rikku's brother," Buddy explained. "He sure as hell better not be mine, and Brother is his _name_. Confusing, but you'll get used to it."

Buddy pulled Brother closer to him and began talking to him in hushed tones.

"I'm sorry about that," Yuna said. "Brother _is _technically the leader of the Gullwings, but everyone seems to forget about it."

"THAT IS A CRIME?" Brother suddenly shouted from the front of the bridge.

The bridge was suddenly silent apart from Buddy's hushed explanation to Brother, and Rikku's smothered giggling.

"Yevonites are strange!" Brother exclaimed as pulled away from Buddy. "Why they make you being in love a crime makes no sense to me at all."

"A crime?" Tidus asked as he scratched the side of his head. "So you two were going to be arresting for what; being in love?"

"That's about it," Beclem confirmed with a nod of his head.

"I guess I'm still getting used to some of Spira's laws," Tidus admitted. Neither Beclem nor Isaaru questioned what he meant by this. "That's so different from back home. No wonder Wakka wasn't getting the hints."

"What!" Yuna shrieked.

"Just kidding," Tidus said, laughing at the horrified look on Yuna's face. Tidus turned around then and smiled at Paine.

"I'm surprised your reaction wasn't a little bit more impressive," he told her. "You being a conservative and all."

"I'm not that conservative," Paine said; her expression not changing at all. "Besides, I used to have a couple of friends who were… very close. I did all the panicking I needed to when I walked in on them."

"Eep!" Rikku squealed. "You're not talking about Gippal are you?" Paine simply smiled, making Rikku squeal again. "You are aren't you? Poopy."

Isaaru simply smiled as the antics of the Gullwings continued. He soon felt fingers gently reaching out to touch his own, and he wrapped his hand around Beclem's, turning to give his lover an encouraging smile.

"I could get used to this," he said. "What about you?"

Beclem frowned for a moment, before taking in the kind smile on Isaaru's face and grinning back.

"I've been in worse places," he answered.

He continued to watch as Buddy continued his effort to get the now outraged Brother to calm down. Rikku was still pestering Paine to tell her more about Baralai and Gippal's relationship. Tidus and Yuna were talking quietly to one another, leaving Beclem and Isaaru to place a chaste kiss on one another's lips without anyone noticing.

"Yeah," Beclem added, as they pulled apart. "I could get used to it."

* * *

Beclem sighed as he stared out at the expanse of the Bikanel desert, before wrapping the strip of fabric which covered his mouth tighter around it in an effort to block out the sand which was still managing to sneak in.

He recalled the conversation which had led him to this mess.

"_We need supplies," Isaaru had commented. "And clothes."_

"_Well you can't go anywhere," Beclem had argued. "Too many people would know your face."_

"_Then you will just have to go by yourself," Isaaru had retorted._

"_What in Sin's name am I supposed to do if somebody recognises me?" Beclem roared._

"_No-one is going to recognise you," Isaaru told him, as he placed a comforting hand on each of Beclem's forearms. He leaned forwards and left the slightest of kisses on Beclem's forehead. "Not without your mask at least."_

_Isaaru smiled encouraging at Beclem. "I will talk to Lady Yuna and the Gullwings and see if they will be able to drop us off somewhere on Bikanel Island; then we are almost guaranteed that no-one will know us, and if they do, chances are that they won't care."_

_Beclem leaned in close to Isaaru then for a moment, resting his head on Isaaru's shoulder. Isaaru smiled and placed another kiss on Beclem's forehead._

"_If through some highly unlikely occurrence you find yourself in trouble, I will come and rescue you," he told his lover. "I promise you that I will; even if it means standing against the whole of Spira."_

Beclem sighed, the memory giving him just enough courage to walk into the small Al Bhed village. Compared to most Spiran cities this was no more than a tiny town, but it still had enough to satisfy all of its residents, including the supplies and clothes that Isaaru and he needed.

He stopped by a weapon's stall, wondering if he had enough money on him to buy Isaaru a new staff. He inspected a few of the weapons, before coming to the decision that he would have to buy everything else before he would know whether he could afford to buy his lover such an expensive gift.

He moved on to a clothing store, and chose some robes which looked as though they would fit Isaaru, in pale blue and deep red, colours which they both liked. He was just about to choose something more modest for himself, when he heard a voice shriek out on the other side of the tent.

"Beclem!" it screamed. "It's you!"

He started, preparing to run away as fast as he possibly could. Before he could though he felt someone jump onto his back, and felt the strip of fabric over his mouth get torn away.

"Hi!" Keekah said as he turned around to face his attacker. "I didn't mean to scare you or anything. I was just really surprised to see you here. What _are _you doing here anyway?"

"Picking up supplies," Beclem said, gesturing to the half-full bag at his side.

"Your face is really nice," Keekah said suddenly. "I can see why Isaaru likes you now. You should never have covered it up."

Beclem sighed and shook his head at the half Al Bhed's words.

"So you heard about us all the way out here then?" Beclem asked.

"Yes," Keekah answered solemnly. "There have been a lot of requests from New Yevon for information about the two of you, but I think a lot of the Al Bhed are secretly hoping for you to get away with it. After all, many of both the Al Bhed and Guado could be arrested under the same laws you are if the Yevonites decided to crack down on it."

Beclem sighed again, and returned the strip of fabric to its place over his mouth. Keekah looked at him with her head on the side for a moment.

"How did you escape from Bevelle?" she asked him.

"We had some help," Beclem revealed. "We're staying on Lady Yuna's airship at the moment. Don't let anyone else know about it though."

"Don't worry," Keekah assured him. "I won't."

She looked up at the ceiling of the tent for a moment, while Beclem moved on to the next lot of clothing.

"I take it Isaaru is still on the airship then," Keekah finally said. Beclem nodded in reply.

Keekah nodded once more at him, and exited the tent without another word. Beclem watched her leave, wondering what had prompted such an abrupt ending to their conversation, before resuming his shopping.

He had just finished picking up all the supplies that were needed, and was passing the weapons stall once more when Keekah ran up to him again, smiling widely.

"Hands out," she said, as she rummaged in her bag for something.

He frowned, but ended up placing his hands in front of him as she had requested. Keekah smiled at him, and placed a large double handful of something on his palms. It wasn't an impressive gift; consisting of a few basic medical supplies, a small amount of Gil, and a small charm of some sort. The charm caught Beclem's eye though, and he held it up to the light, watching as it cast different coloured rays of light around it.

"It's not much," Keekah admitted, "but the two of you need them more than I do."

"What's this?" Beclem asked her. The charm was unlike anything he had ever seen before, consisting of a globe made of some sort of clear iridescent material and having been decorated by a simple bell and several ribbons.

"That's my lucky charm," Keekah told him. "I don't actually get to use it much though. It's supposed to do something to enhance your magic. Isaaru probably would know more about what it does than I would."

"Do you know anything at all about magic?" Beclem asked her.

"Only a little bit," Keekah admitted.

"Good," Beclem said, pocketing her gifts and grabbing her by the wrist. He dragged her further into the weapons stall towards the staffs before letting go. "That's more than me. You can help me pick out a good staff for Isaaru then, because I don't have a clue what I'm doing."

Keekah simply smiled at him sheepishly, and began inspecting the staffs with him.

"You know something," she said. "I'm glad that the two of you are happy together."

Beclem didn't ask how she knew that they were happy, but part of him hoped that she could see the smile beneath the strip of cloth covering his lower face.

* * *

An hour later Beclem and Keekah had chosen a fine but relatively basic weapon for Isaaru, and Beclem called to the Celsius to land and pick him up once more. A rather frantic Isaaru interrupted his conversation with Buddy.

"Beclem?" it called. "Thank Yevon. I was so worried. You've been gone for so long."

Keekah giggled at the worried tone in the ex-Summoner's voice.

"It was only two hours," Beclem told his lover.

"You said it would only take one," Isaaru said.

"I ran into an old friend," Beclem explained, passing the communicator to Keekah, who had been gesturing for Beclem to pass her the small device for most of the conversation.

"Hi Isaaru," Keekah said into the communicator, her voice full of excitement. Beclem listened into the one half of the conversation that he could hear clearly. "No, he hasn't been…"

Beclem snatched the communicator back before the conversation could go any further, and spoke into it.

"I'll see you soon," he said.

"See you soon, honey," Isaaru returned, making Beclem grimace and switch the communicator off.

"Honey?" he repeated, not sure whether he was touched or revolted by Isaaru's new pet name for him.

* * *

Beclem was welcomed onto the airship by an enthusiastic embrace from his lover and one giggling Rikku. Isaaru took one look at Beclem's expression and frowned.

"I told you he would hate being called 'honey'," he told Rikku, just making the Al Bhed laugh even more.

"I guess it could be worse," Beclem said, giving Isaaru the new staff. Isaaru stared at his lover and the gift in shock. "This is for you… love," he said, before walking off with a quite obvious blush on his face. The presence of even that smallest of spoken endearments in Beclem's speech made Isaaru gasp happily before walking off after his lover, leaving Rikku to giggle at the two men's antics by herself.

* * *

An hour later saw Beclem, Isaaru and the Gullwings standing on the bridge, debating Beclem and Isaaru's future.

"You could always stay on the Celsius for longer, you know," Yuna said.

"No," Isaaru sighed. "We couldn't. We've already been far too much of a burden for everyone here."

"Bikanel is always a good option," Paine commented.

"Yeah," Rikku added. "The two of you could become diggers. It's sort of hard work, but the pay is all right, and no-one would care that you are who you are. I bet there are tonnes of people like you digging for a living."

"You think so huh," Beclem said, pondering the idea. It did have its benefits after all, and it was better than anything else they had thought of.

"Well, think about it," Yuna suggested. "We can always take you to Djose Temple tomorrow to sign up, and then we can drop you back on the island if you decide that's what you want."

Beclem and Isaaru looked towards one another for guidance, before smiling weakly and involuntarily shuffling closer to one another.

"We'll think about it," Beclem said.

* * *

That night saw one very excited Isaaru enter the cabin of the Celsius, pulling Beclem along with him. Suddenly Isaaru stopped dead in his tracks. Beclem stopped one step later than his lover, accidentally assisting Isaaru in his plot to pull Beclem back into an embrace.

"Guess what," Isaaru whispered, as he began to kiss Beclem, first on the ear, and then venturing lower onto Beclem's neck.

"What?" Beclem moaned softly, leaning back into his lover.

"We have a bed all to ourselves tonight," Isaaru answered. "Just you and me, and some blankets, and no cold stone."

"Sounds good," Beclem groaned, letting out another more unintelligible noise as he was thrown rather ungracefully over Isaaru's shoulder.

Isaaru threw his lover down on their shared bed, and stood at the other end, surveying Beclem for all of a second, before he pounced on him, pressing him against the covers in a passionate and demanding kiss.

Beclem moaned loudly, surprised by Isaaru's sudden aggressiveness, but definitely not about to protest against it. He opened his mouth and legs almost immediately, ready for whatever Isaaru was going to do, even though both men were still fully clothed.

Isaaru pulled back from the kiss, ignoring Beclem's arms, which were placed on his shoulders and were desperately attempting to make him resume the action. He smiled confidently at his lover, before sliding down Beclem's body and removing Beclem's trousers.

Beclem moaned as he felt Isaaru's lips and teeth gently scrape against his skin, firstly on his hip, and then over more sensitive areas.

Beclem thought that Isaaru was going to go further, but Isaaru moved back up to kiss him once more, leaving certain matters which were, in Beclem's mind, quite pressing, to be left unattended for now.

Beclem found himself rubbing up against Isaaru, trying to get his lover to do more, but Isaaru just grinned and whispered in his ear seductively.

"You need to be more patient Beclem," he said, covering Beclem's mouth with his own once more.

Beclem's legs wrapped around Isaaru, pulling the man's body closer to him, just as his arms attempted to do the same. Isaaru grinned at the lose of control Beclem was already experiencing, before slipping one hand inside Beclem's other clothes and gently caressing the spot on Beclem's back which always made him go crazy.

Beclem let out a satisfying groan at this action. His hands moved from Isaaru's back to begin tugging impatiently at the robes that his lover still wore. Isaaru gave into Beclem's impatience for a while, moving slightly so that Beclem could slide the robes from his shoulders.

Beclem smiled as Isaaru's outer robes were shed, throwing them to the floor before starting on Isaaru's other clothes, pulling them off so frantically that Isaaru's inner robe tore a little, before both it and Isaaru's underclothes joined his robes on the floor.

Beclem grinned and clung to Isaaru as he felt his bare skin sliding over Isaaru's now. He let out a series of short, soft moans as their lower bodies ground against one another, trying to move so that Isaaru would take him.

"Uh uh," Isaaru chastised Beclem, as he used all his willpower to pull back from the ex-Crusader's tight embrace for a moment. "You've still got clothes on."

"Fine," Beclem said, lying back with his arms stretched above his head in an effort to make it as easy as possible for Isaaru to undress him.

Isaaru just smirked at this action, and began very deliberately, and very slowly taking Beclem's vest off, making sure he caressed Beclem's skin at certain points as he did so. Beclem began squirming impatiently, whimpering for Isaaru to be quicker and stop teasing him.

Isaaru silenced Beclem's whimpers with a fiery kiss, finishing removing his vest with one swift movement and let it fall and join his own clothes on the floor.

He then began the painstakingly slow process of removing Beclem's undershirt, spending more time caressing and teasing Beclem's soft skin than actually concentrating on taking the garment off.

Eventually it too came off and joined the other clothes on the floor, and Beclem's impatient wriggling and mewling became even more desperate as he felt Isaaru's skin touching his own.

"Please," he whispered, arching against Isaaru.

(AN: I did have some more detailed stuff in here, but it needed to be edited a little bit so that it was suitable for the site. Sorry guys.)

"I love you. I love you," Beclem repeatedly whispered between kisses and soft bites on Isaaru's neck and shoulder.

Beclem moaned loudly as Isaaru finished inside of him, the feeling making him follow his lover into bliss.

When they became themselves once more, Isaaru smiled and rolled onto his side, taking Beclem with him in a tight embrace.

"I love you too," Isaaru whispered into Beclem's ear.

Beclem smiled at him, and placed a kiss on Isaaru's lips. It lasted for quite a few minutes, before Beclem nuzzled into Isaaru's shoulder.

"And now," Beclem whispered. "We are finally allowed to fall asleep together."

Isaaru smiled at this comment and pulled Beclem closer.

"I guess we got our wish," he said.

Their eyes both slid shut within a couple of minutes, and their smiles didn't once slip from their faces while they slept.

* * *

The city of Luca was extremely quiet at night. All the crowds which usually packed themselves into the area around the famous Blitzball stadium during the day had now retired to whatever nightspot or hotel visitors and sports-stars alike chose to frequent.

All this meant that the two guards who were watching the main entrance to the stadium were currently finding their shift incredibly boring. At least they had one another to hold a conversation with. They were, after all, quite close friends.

"Wedge," the first guard said, in an attempt to strike out some form of conversation. "Do you think we should try out for another team next season?"

"Do what you want Biggs," the guard named Wedge said. "But if you ask me, it's a lot more financially stable if you just stick to being a guard. If you want the glamour of being a Blitzball player again then fine. Just don't blame me if you pick the loosing team, like we did this last season."

"I couldn't play Blitzball by myself," Biggs argued. "It's just not the same without you. It's no fun."

Wedge grinned at this comment.

"Yeah," he said. "And I couldn't survive a shift this boring without having you to talk to, so don't you go running off and leaving me here by myself all right?"

The two guards smiled at one another once more, before resuming their job and staring out at the dark and empty streets of Luca. They stayed like that for a while, before Biggs took a rather deep breath, and attempted to strike up a conversation again.

"So," he began. "Did you hear about Summoner Isaaru and that guy, what was his name?"

"Beclem," Wedge answered with a frown. "Yeah. I did."

"I heard that New Yevon still hasn't found them," Biggs laughed. "I'd like to know how they escaped with that many people after them."

"Cowards," Wedge interjected, stopping Biggs's words immediately. "They committed a crime; they should act like real men and face the punishment instead of running away from it."

"What?" Biggs asked, a little shocked by the fierceness in his friend's voice. "But their punishment is death."

"Don't you think they deserve it?" Wedge asked.

"No!" Biggs said so loudly that his voice echoed throughout the empty streets. "No; they shouldn't die for it. You can't help who you fall in love with. They shouldn't die just because they fell in love with the wrong person."

"How can you say that? Those two; they're freaks."

Biggs sighed. "You've never been in love then, have you Wedge?"

"No," Wedge said, shaking his head. "At least, I'm pretty sure that I haven't."

"It kind of creeps up on you," Biggs explained. "I mean, you don't plan to do it or anything, but before you know it, they're your whole life, and…"

"Ssh…" Wedge interrupted him again. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what?"

"It was like this really strange sort of sliding or hissing noise."

"No, I didn't… Wait, was that it then?"

"Yeah. What do you think it was?"

"I don't know," Biggs answered. "I've never heard anything like it before in my life."

The two of them froze as a rather small and soft looking sphere of white floated in front of their eyes. It popped spontaneously in front of them, spraying them with a chalky white powder. Biggs and Wedge coughed as some of the powder made its way into their throats.

A loud crashing noise suddenly erupted behind them, and they turned around, nodding at one another before running into the stadium to discover the source of the noise.

They were stopped short as the ground beneath them began cracking as something large forced its way up from underneath the stadium. Pyreflies began floating around the stadium. A dark shape rose from the centre of the arena, growing and growing as the pyreflies joined with it.

The ground continued to split and shatter, and Wedge and Biggs were forced to run back away from the stadium.

The fiend that had forced its way into Luca stadium turned around and fixed Wedge and Biggs with cold yellow eyes.


	15. Cloister Fourteen

**Cloister Fourteen**

"Well, the two of you look very well rested this morning," Yuna commented happily as Beclem and Isaaru emerged onto the bridge the next day.

Rikku giggled at this comment. Paine smirked. Beclem wondered if he had perhaps been just a little too loud that last night.

He ignored the reactions of the two women, and placed his hands in his pockets to realise that Keekah's gifts from the day before were still tucked away there. He pulled out the so-called lucky charm and showed it to Isaaru.

"What do you make of this?" he asked. "Keekah gave it to me yesterday. She called it her lucky charm, but she said you would probably know more about what it actually does than she would."

Isaaru frowned, and inspected the jewel for a moment, letting it dangle in front of his eyes. He clutched it closely in his hands, and then gasped.

"What is it?" Beclem asked.

"This is a very rare jewel," he explained. "Usually when casting magic you need to use up some of your energy to get any results. This jewel though allows you to take energy from it instead, meaning that you could potentially cast as much powerful magic as you like in a battle without becoming weary at all."

"Keekah was right," Isaaru commented, as he tied the charm on to the end of his staff. "This charm is very lucky indeed."

He had just finished tying the string around the intricate loop on top of his staff, when a loud alarm sounded from the Celsius's bridge.

"We've picked up a distress call coming from Luca," Buddy announced from his position at the navigating equipment. "There have been reports of a massive fiend in the city. It's apparently destroying everything in sight. So far no-one has been able to stop or even wound it."

Yuna gasped at this news. Beclem and Isaaru glanced at one another, shivers going up their spines as they both recalled the same pair of cold yellow eyes.

"What does the fiend look like?" Beclem asked.

"The reports don't say much," Buddy said, "and I wouldn't trust what they are saying. At least twenty metres high, covered in spikes, and like something out of a nightmare. It doesn't sound like something that would really exist if you ask me."

Beclem turned extremely pale at this news, and Isaaru placed a hand on his shoulder in an effort to comfort him, even though Beclem could feel a slight shake in his lover's fingers that Isaaru was trying to repress.

"Do we go and help?" Rikku asked, turning to Yuna for guidance.

"If it is as dangerous as they say, we may not be able to do anything," Paine commented.

"Come on," Rikku whined. "If we can beat Vegnagun then we can take on that thing!"

"The Gullwings may not be able to do anything," Beclem commented, making everyone in the room apart from Isaaru turn to stare at him. "And they may not have to, but Isaaru and I have to go and face that thing."

"We fought with it before," Isaaru explained. "We know what it can do."

"But you could get caught," Tidus reminded them.

"I know," Isaaru said, his hand reaching out to grab a hold of Beclem's. He gave his lover's hand a gentle squeeze. "But we can't leave the people of Luca to die."

Beclem gave Isaaru a sad smile, and nodded his agreement.

"Besides," he added, a strong spark beginning to appear in the ex-Crusader's eyes. "I want a rematch."

"All right then," Yuna said, giving Isaaru and Beclem one last questioning look. The two men nodded at her. "On to Luca!" she commanded.

------+-+(O)

"Are you sure that you want to do this?" Isaaru asked Beclem as the two of them prepared for what was undoubtedly going to be a difficult battle.

"No," Beclem admitted. "But it's not a question of whether we _want_ to do it, is it?"

Isaaru nodded sadly.

"We've reached Luca," Buddy announced over the ship's speaker system. "Or at least, what's left of it."

Beclem and Isaaru ran to the ship's bridge and then moved to the window to look down at what had once been one of the grandest cities in Spira. The city's famous Blitzball stadium was now no more than rubble. The larger area around it had been completely flattened. Patches of white covered the ground, Beclem paling at the sight as memories of the strange poisonous substance came back to him.

"We have just received word that both the Youth League and New Yevon have sent battalions to help get rid of this thing," Buddy announced. "I don't know if that's going to do much though. Not if this fiend can destroy an entire city this quickly."

"Eep!" Rikku suddenly exclaimed from her side of the bridge. "It's huge!"

"There's no way we'd be able to actually see it from this height," Buddy told her.

Beclem and Isaaru moved over to stand beside Rikku. There was no mistaking the odd shape of the dark fiend as it moved, making an entire building crack and crumble into dust with one movement.

"That's it," Isaaru confirmed. Buddy froze, looking quite shocked and scared by the information.

"Chappu," Beclem whispered, pressing one hand against the glass of the Celsius's window.

Yuna looked at him then, an unasked question clearly on her face. _That's right_, Beclem realised; Yuna was a close friend of both Wakka and Lulu, Chappu's brother and his fiancée. It would only make sense that she would know of Chappu as well.

"In Via Infinito," Yuna began, drawing Isaaru's attention towards her and Beclem as well. "I came across some very lost and angry souls. They turned into powerful fiends right in front of my eyes."

She paused for a moment then, staring out the window at Luca sadly.

"Are you telling me," she continued. "That this is Chappu as one of those fiends?"

Beclem nodded once. His hand still hadn't left the glass pane in front of him.

"This must be difficult for you," Yuna commented, placing one hand supportively on top of his. She squeezed gently, pulling Beclem's hand away from the glass, and moving it towards Isaaru. Isaaru took the hint, and grabbed Beclem's hand in his own, wrapping their fingers tightly together.

"Are the two of you ready?" Buddy asked them.

Beclem and Isaaru smiled and nodded at one another.

"Yes," they answered at the same time.

------+-+(O)

The grey ground cracked beneath Beclem's weight as he experimentally placed a foot down. He looked at what remained of the once tiled floor, now a mixture of ash and crumbled rock where it used to be shining white marble. The area of the city they were in was now completely unrecognisable. Here and there stood large lumps of stone which were now the only remnants of once great buildings. The white spheres they had come across in Bevelle lay here and there in clumps over the wreckage.

The fiend had taken its toll, and several men lay on the floor not far from where the ship had landed. One of them had been crushed by debris. The other two were a sickly grey colour, and looked as though they had succumbed to the fiend's poison while attempting to rescue their friend.

Beclem and Isaaru both tightened the strips of cloth they had brought with them around their mouths and ventured in the direction that the sounds of destruction were coming from, trying to ignore the grizzly scene around them.

"Do you suppose Chappu makes these," Beclem asked as he gestured towards the white things.

"I think so," Isaaru answered. He looked over to his lover and frowned at the man's pale complexion. "Are you sure you are all right with this?" he asked.

"It's too late to turn back now," Beclem answered in a slightly muffled voice.

The white spheres eventually began to dissipate as they journeyed closer to where Chappu was. The two men frowned as they suddenly found their path blocked by two of Luca's guards.

"No-one but designated soldiers are allowed past this point," one of them announced. "We're sorry, but we can't allow…"

The man trailed off as he took a good long look at Beclem and Isaaru, a look in his eyes appearing like those of a person that has suddenly found themselves in the company of a long-lost acquaintance and unable to remember their name.

"We have fought this fiend before," Isaaru said, ignoring the guard's unwavering gaze. "We have an idea of how we might destroy it."

"It's them," the man that had been staring at them whispered.

"It's who?" the other guard asked.

"Beclem and Isaaru," the first guard hissed. "Wedge; its Beclem and Isaaru."

Wedge paused for a moment, looking Beclem and Isaaru up and down, before drawing his gun and pointing it right at their heads.

"You're under arrest for heinous crimes against Yevon," Wedge announced. "The two of you aren't going anywhere." Wedge cocked his rifle, and Isaaru and Beclem realised he intended to shoot.

"Wedge, no!" Biggs shouted, pushing the gun away from Beclem and Isaaru. "You're not going to shoot them!"

"Why not!" Wedge shouted back. "Their sentence is supposed to be death."

"In Yevon's name Wedge; they might be able to save everyone!"

"I'd rather not be saved by criminals," Wedge proclaimed, as he brought his gun up to point at Isaaru and Beclem once more.

"Why not?" Biggs growled. "Lady Yuna was a wanted criminal when she destroyed Sin!"

And so the argument continued. Beclem and Isaaru stood in front of the quarrelling pair and looked back and forth between them, neither of them willing to make a move lest Wedge see this as a hostile action and actually shoot them, until finally Biggs said something which made Wedge completely freeze up.

"What would you do if you found out that I was a homosexual?" Biggs asked.

Even with Wedge's helmet in place Beclem and Isaaru could tell that Wedge was shocked, and had no way of countering Biggs's last challenge.

"You…" Wedge whispered, glancing at Biggs but not looking straight at him. "I… I don't… don't know." He shook his head. "You're not though, are you?" There was a pleading tone to Wedge's voice, and Biggs could only sigh and smile gently at his friend.

"But what if I was?" Biggs said. "I'd still be me, right?"

Wedge didn't answer, just looked guiltily down at the floor as though he was thinking.

"Go on," Biggs said, indicating that Isaaru and Beclem could continue walking. "We're not going to stop you."

"Thank you," Isaaru said, nodding at Biggs as they walked past.

Wedge began shouting at Biggs almost as soon as Beclem and Isaaru had left, but the two lovers ignored them, focussing instead on the battle they were about to face.

------+-+(O)

"Well I just can't stand back and watch as two men risk their lives to save ours," Biggs finally snapped, walking off in the direction that Isaaru and Beclem had. "And I think ignoring their bravery merely because they fell in love with the wrong person would be a completely stupid thing to do. Stay here if you want, but I'm going to help them."

Wedge didn't move for a while, standing still in the place he had for the past few hours and pretending not to care about what his friend thought. He frowned as he stared out at the remains of Luca. He was not going to go and help just because Biggs was. After all, Biggs had supported those… those… Wedge tried to find a word in his vocabulary for how he felt towards Beclem and Isaaru, but realised, that despite what he had said to Biggs, there was, beneath all the hatred and disgust, a tiny amount of what he was afraid was admiration.

That still didn't mean that he was going to help Biggs, and in a couple of moments Biggs would realise that Wedge was not going to come with him, and without his friend by his side he would turn around and come back to his guard duty, as he was supposed to.

Wedge waited, and waited, but still Biggs did not come back.

"Sinspawn," Wedge cursed, throwing his rifle over his shoulder and running in the direction Biggs, Beclem and Isaaru had travelled.

"Biggs," Wedge called. "Wait for me, damn you!"

------+-+(O)

Beclem and Isaaru ducked behind a large clump of rubble as a group of soldiers wearing the uniform of the Bevelle guard passed by, managing to hide themselves from view just before the men could see them.

"They must be the reinforcements Buddy told us about," Beclem commented. "Idiots; they're all going to die."

The Yevonite's footsteps had long died down, and Beclem and Isaaru were just about to continue moving when they discovered that they hadn't been as hidden as they previously thought.

"Halt!" a man commanded as he came face to face with Beclem and Isaaru. "What do you two think you're doing he…" the man trailed off as he realised who Isaaru and Beclem were. Isaaru gasped.

"Maroda?" Isaaru greeted his brother hesitantly.

"I have nothing to say to you," Maroda whispered, turning his head so that he faced the floor instead of his older brother. "I won't arrest you, but that's all I will give you. You are welcome to help us destroy the fiend, but if you survive, the other guards will have no problem arresting you or killing you. I suggest you leave now."

"Maroda," Isaaru pleaded with his brother. Maroda turned his gaze even more so that Isaaru's eyes would not come into contact with his own.

"Maroda," Beclem called. "That's your brother talking to you."

Maroda hesitantly turned back and his eyes finally met with his brother's. For a moment Maroda saw the look of hope that persistently shone in Isaaru's eye. The dark-skinned male merely frowned at this and averted his gaze once more.

"He's no brother of mine," Maroda said, as he turned his back on them.

"Maroda," Isaaru whispered one final time as his brother began walking away.

Beclem moved to support his lover, but Isaaru had fallen to the ground in grief before he could reach out to him. Tears began streaming down Isaaru's cheeks, and he reached out after his brother pointlessly. Beclem touched Isaaru on the arm, gently moving to cradle his lover in his arms, wanting to comfort him even though he knew his mere presence could not do much to stifle emotional pain such as this. Still, Isaaru turned around and reached for him and in a way that was enough.

Their embrace was brought to a premature end as a roar echoed throughout Luca. The wall in front of them shook and crumbled, spraying debris everywhere. Beclem and Isaaru jumped to their feet to dodge a large chunk of the collapsed wall as it flew towards them.

Beclem and Isaaru turned towards the newly formed hole in the wall, Beclem drawing his pistols, and Isaaru firmly placing his staff in front of them, determination in both their eyes as they faced down their enemy.

Chappu rose from the dust, rising over the debris to cast a horrifying shadow over the area. In the distance someone screamed.

Chappu glanced around him for a bit, his claws flexing as if itching for the next battle, before his pale yellow eyes fixed on the two men standing below him.

Beclem and Isaaru nodded almost imperceptibly at one another, and charged.


	16. Cloister Fifteen

**Cloister Fifteen**

Beclem knew that shooting at the fiend's thick skin would do no good, so instead he jumped up, twisting in the air so that he landed on the fiend's arm for all of a second, and used it to jump higher for long enough to take two perfectly aimed shots at Chappu's eyes. He flipped back to the ground, landing on his feet. Chappu scowled, but didn't seem to be too injured by the bullets.

Isaaru stopped a few feet short of the fiend, and cast an icy-cold spell on it. Chappu shuddered, and struck Isaaru in retaliation. Beclem roared and fired a few more shots into the fiend, trying to at least distract it before it could swipe at Isaaru again, but the fiend didn't even flinch as it floated closer to Isaaru's limp form.

It raised one hand above its shoulder, getting ready to strike. Beclem screamed threateningly at it but the fiend completely ignored him.

All of a sudden a roaring sounded from behind the fiend's back and fire crept over its flesh. Chappu immediately lowered his arm and turned around, a dangerous glare in his eyes.

Beclem looked behind him to discover Wedge and Biggs. Biggs stood confidently with his rifle slung over his shoulders. Wedge panted as he stood with his hands stretched out in front of him, having been responsible for the fire spell that had struck Chappu in the back.

"Need some help?" Biggs asked.

Beclem smiled and nodded at the two guards in thanks, before rushing over to heal his lover. He kneeled beside Isaaru and began to apply healing medicine, leaving Biggs and Wedge to take care of the fiend for now.

Chappu immediately went for Wedge, who began running away from the creature as fast as he could. Biggs shot a couple of times at Chappu, trying to draw its attention away from his friend, but it did nothing.

"Attacking it doesn't work!" Beclem shouted at him. "Fire really seems to hurt it though!"

Biggs nodded, and began rummaging in his pockets for something. He soon pulled out a small red bomb, and threw it directly at Chappu. It exploded on the fiend's back, temporarily covering him in a burning fire. Chappu threw his head back and screamed.

The flame soon died down, and Chappu was left with a massive red scar where the fire had burned away his skin. Chappu immediately turned around then, and fixed Biggs with a murderous glare.

* * *

"It looks like a battle's already started," one of Maroda's men commented.

The entire battalion had stopped, and now stood silently watching as clouds of dust burst into the air, followed occasionally by a quick burst of fire.

"What do we do, Captain?" another man asked Maroda.

This could make things difficult, Maroda realised. Depending on who was left alive at the end of the fight against the fiend, he would probably have to arrest his brother and Beclem. It would be so much easier to let the fiend take care of them, and then he wouldn't have to do anything. His conscience would be clear then, wouldn't it?

He could feel his old instincts from his time as Isaaru's guardian nagging at the back of his mind. That part of him knew that no matter what laws his brother had broken, he could not let him be hurt. He was his brother's guardian, and knew he would not be able to change that within himself.

He sighed, mentally cursed himself and the fates, and turned to give his men an encouraging smile. He knew some of them would not survive against such a monster, but they were brave enough that they would fight alongside him nonetheless.

"We help them," Maroda answered. "Come on men. Let's go kick some ass."

* * *

Isaaru's eyes opened in a flash, and before Beclem could say anything, the ex-Summoner had jumped back to his feet, and began building up the energy to cast another spell. Wedge and Biggs were now running around the fiend, taking turns to attack it. Wedge would a cast a spell, causing the fiend to pay attention to him, allowing Biggs to prepare a bomb and then attack, switching the fiend's attention backwards and forwards between them.

Isaaru breathed in deeply, before aiming an enormous burst of white fire at the creature. The flare engulfed Chappu, leaving deep wounds where he had been burned and revealing some of the fiend's flesh.

Beclem grinned confidently, and began firing a few shots at the creature's wounds. The bullets only did a small amount of damage, but it was better than nothing. Beclem stopped to reload, and Chappu let out an infuriated roar that shook the floor beneath them.

It began charging towards Beclem and Isaaru, claws ready to strike them hard enough to instantly kill.

A volley of gunshots soon peppered Chappu from the side, and Beclem and Isaaru looked over to discover Maroda's group of guards had joined the fight. Maroda tossed his brother a salute and a small smile, before turning his attention back to the fight against Chappu.

"Fire another round, men!" Maroda commanded.

The guards did as he said, leaving a scattering of small wounds over one of Chappu's sides. There were a few moments in which they had to reload, and Biggs and Wedge took over for a moment.

Isaaru cast another flare spell on Chappu, which made the fiend's scowl widen.

"Its not slowing down at all," Beclem commented. "Even though we've done so much damage to it, it's not doing anything to seriously wound it."

"We will get there eventually," Isaaru assured his lover. "If we keep going like this, there is no way we can loose."

At that very moment, Chappu let out another roar. The light in his eyes turned a dangerous red, and the spikes on his back began to stand up. Wedge, Biggs and several of Maroda's men froze at this new development and began staring at the creature.

Some of the white spheres Beclem and Isaaru had seen burst out from beneath Chappu's spikes and began floating around the city. A couple of Maroda's men shot at the spheres. Beclem called out for them not to, but it was too late. The white spheres burst, spreading poisonous pollen through the air. Biggs inhaled a lungful of it, and Wedge immediately moved to his friend's side to apply an antidote.

The spikes on Chappu's back began to stand up even more as the fiend continued to roar. He fixed Maroda's battalion with a murderous glare. Several of the men had already been affected by the poison, but others still had their guns pointed at the fiend.

They fired off several shots, but that did not stop Chappu from approaching them. The fiend stopped screaming for a moment, making the area seem deathly quiet apart from the worrying sound of Biggs's soft coughing.

The noise of something passing through air at incredible speed echoed throughout the stadium, and some of the small spikes on the fiend's back flew off and flew through the air towards Maroda's battalion. The men couldn't even run before the spikes flew into them, stabbing into them like pins into a pincushion.

Two spikes stabbed Maroda in the torso, making him fly back several feet. A look of surprise registered on his face for a moment, before he began coughing, small droplets of blood flying from his mouth at the action.

Isaaru ran over to his brother's side, giving the spikes and wounds a quick inspection, hoping that there would be some way of saving Maroda. The spikes were too large though, about the size of a fist at the widest part, and Isaaru knew his brother had no chance.

Beclem glanced over at the two brothers, knowing that the fight was now in his hands for a few moments. He charged towards Chappu, firing several shots into the fiend's back, where Isaaru had previously hurt him with his magic. Chappu scowled and tried to hit Beclem, but he ducked under the attack, and Chappu's claws only managed to leave one deep gash in Beclem's shoulder.

"Maroda," Isaaru whispered, as he felt the first of many tears make its way down his cheeks. He grabbed his brother's hand and squeezed gently, hoping for some sort of response.

Maroda's eyes opened slowly, and he smiled at his older brother, giving Isaaru's hand the gentlest of squeezes in response.

"I'm sorry," Maroda whispered. "I've been stupid."

"Not as stupid as some people," Isaaru said, trying to smile through his tears.

"No," Maroda answered. "I've been a lot stupider. You two… you're happy. He makes you happy. That's good… Guess I'm just jealous."

"Just hang on for a moment Maroda," Isaaru said, knowing that his words were completely pointless. There was no way that Maroda would survive this. "You can beat this."

Maroda let out a chuckle at this obvious lie of Isaaru's and grinned at his older brother.

"Beat that thing Isaaru," Maroda told him, squeezing his hand again as he did. He let out another couple of weak coughs, and when he talked next, his breathing was heavy, and his words strained. "Beat it… and be happy, cause… you need to be happy. I'll always be your guardian you know…"

"I know," Isaaru answered.

Maroda nodded weakly, before his eyes slid shut, and he sighed his final breath. Isaaru felt his brother's hand go limp in his own, and he knew that Maroda was gone.

Isaaru stayed by his brother for a moment, before scowling up at his killer. Beclem was still fighting the fiend with all of his might, firing as many shots into the fiend's back as possible. Beclem now had several significant gashes on his arms and legs, but nothing that looked deadly.

Wedge and Biggs were also firing a few gunshots and spells into the fight, despite the fact that Biggs was now wheezing, and his face was pale as the poison invaded his system.

Isaaru yelled and charged at the fiend as it moved to attack Beclem, casting a strong flare spell at the creature's face. Chappu screamed; flailing about as the fire burned at its eyes. The magic had soon disappeared though, and it twirled around and charged straight towards Isaaru, as the ex-Summoner knew it would.

It was just about to strike Isaaru, when it let out a strange roar that sounded almost like a chuckle, and a dangerous glare flashed in its eyes. It turned around once more, and struck at Biggs before the guard could defend himself. A large gash opened in Biggs's stomach and he fell to the ground.

Wedge screamed and fired several furious shots into the creature. Chappu ignored them though, and turned his attention to Beclem and Isaaru. Wedge scowled at the fiend and rushed to his friend's side, concentrating on healing him instead.

Isaaru and Beclem glanced at one another as they realised they were once again the only two left in the battle against Chappu.

"Don't stand too close to one another," Beclem shouted to Isaaru. He stopped talking for a moment as he dodged a swipe from the fiend. "In case he fires those spikes at us."

Isaaru nodded his understanding, and ran around Chappu so that he was directly behind him. He let Beclem fire a few shots at the fiend while he concentrated on forming protective shields around the two of them.

The next time Chappu struck at Beclem, instead of killing him as he would have before Isaaru cast the protective shield, it left a gash in his torso that Isaaru knew could be easily healed.

Isaaru ran around the fiend to cast a healing spell on his lover, before casting another flare spell on Chappu. The fiend's eyes began flashing a dangerous red once more at this action. The spikes on his back stood up once again and the white spheres began floating through the area.

"Oh no," Isaaru gasped as he realised what was happening. "Kill it!" he shouted at his lover. "Quick!"

Beclem gave a small nod at Isaaru, before charging towards the fiend, his guns aimed and ready in front of him. He fired a few shots in the fiend's wounds, before jumping up and reloading his guns with stronger ammunition as he sailed through the air.

The fiend took a swipe at Beclem, but the ex-Crusader twisted around it, landing on the creature's claws for a moment. The creature looked down and scowled at the man balancing on its arm, reaching its other set of claws up to strike at him.

Isaaru chose that moment to cast one more flare spell on the fiend, making it scream and flinch. Beclem jumped up, using the action of the fiend as a springboard. He sailed up onto the creature's spiked shoulders, and pointed his guns right at the fiend's head.

He unloaded all of his ammunition into Chappu's skull. The fiend screamed at this action, and began flailing about madly. Isaaru cast one last fire spell on the creature's stomach then, and it burst into a cluster of hundreds of pyreflies.

Beclem jumped down from the creature's head as it began to disintegrate, landing momentarily on what was left of its back and receiving a cut on the leg as his foothold disappeared and he was left to slide down the rapidly disappearing remains of the fiend that may have once been Chappu.

Isaaru was there for him to fall against when he reached the ground, and he welcomed the half embrace eagerly. They stood there together and watched as the last of the pyreflies disappeared into the sky, leaving trails of light behind them.

Beclem felt a soft warm tingling in his spine, and realised that Isaaru was casting a healing spell on most of his wounds. He smiled thankfully at his lover, but then as he looked over Isaaru's shoulder, he realised Wedge was still persistently trying to heal Biggs with results a lot less successful than Isaaru.

* * *

"Don't even think about dying on me yet, you bastard," Wedge said as he applied another healing potion on the wound on Biggs's stomach. The poison had taken too much of a hold on Biggs however, and the wound became more and more infected, doing more damage to Biggs's gut then Wedge could heal.

"The fiend is dead now Biggs," Wedge told his friend. "All you have to do now is survive these wounds and everything will be all right."

Biggs smiled and reached one hand up to gently stroke the side of Wedge's face. Wedge started at the touch, but kept his gaze firmly on Biggs's face.

"No," Biggs whispered weakly. "It won't be all right; not for me at least."

"What are you talking about!" Wedge cried, pulling Biggs into his lap. "You'll be fine. Everything will go back to the way that it was before this."

Biggs smiled at this, before a strong wave of pain gripped him and he grimaced.

"I'm not going to make it," he told Wedge. "And you know it, so…"

"Stop talking like that!" Wedge screamed, interrupting Biggs. "What am I supposed to do if you die?"

"So," Biggs continued, ignoring his friend's outburst. "There's something I have to tell you. I can't go without telling you this."

* * *

Beclem watched sadly as Wedge and Biggs said their last goodbyes to one another, knowing from the all too familiar look on their faces what was probably happening.

A noise like the scuffle of several pairs of feet making their way across the ground echoed throughout the city.

Beclem and Isaaru glanced at one another, before they both began to run, knowing that there were very few people that they would want to meet at that present moment. They had barely made it out of the area however, when they found themselves surrounded on both sides by a group of people from the Youth League and another group from New Yevon. Both groups immediately pointed their weapons at Beclem and Isaaru.

"Lucil," Beclem gasped as he realised who was leading the group of Youth League members. "Elma," he acknowledged the second-in-command who was looking very nervous as she stood beside her commanding officer.

"Do you know how much trouble we have had to go through because of you?" Lucil asked Beclem. "New Yevon has been demanding to know why I sent such a deviant into their midst."

Elma flinched at Lucil's harsh words, but kept her weapon pointed at Beclem and Isaaru.

"The two of you are now under arrest," one of the members of the group from New Yevon said as they began to handcuff Beclem and Isaaru. "You are coming with us to Bevelle."

* * *

"Please don't hate me for this," Biggs whispered as he lay in Wedge's arms.

"I could never hate you," Wedge said. "You know that."

"You might change your mind in a second," Biggs sighed. His voice was beginning to break as he ran out of breath. "I'm sorry Wedge… but… I… I love you… Please… don't… hate me… I love you…"

With that Biggs's eyes closed, before he could see the look of confusion and grief that passed over Wedge's face. Maybe in Biggs's imagination Wedge would have immediately jumped away from him, but instead Wedge just pulled him closer and began crying over his friend's body.

"I'm… sorry…" Wedge whispered between sobs. "I… I didn't realise what I was... saying… I don't hate you Biggs… Come back… Please come back… I don't hate you!"

"Hey you!" someone called from the centre of the ruined stadium.

Wedge looked down through tear-stained eyes to see a group of Yevonites, with the now-captured Isaaru and Beclem in custody.

"Did you see what happened here?" one of the Yevonites asked Wedge. He nodded dumbly, unconsciously twisting his fingers beneath Biggs's helmet to tangle in the hair beneath, but could not find the words to answer in any other way.

"Good," the Yevonite said. "We'll need a few witnesses for the trial of these deviants. You're coming with us to Bevelle."

The words barely registered in Wedge's mind, and when they did, all he could do was stare down at the body in his arms and wonder what he was supposed to do now. Wasn't he even going to be allowed to say a proper goodbye to Biggs?

He had soon been joined by a few of the Yevonites, and they helped him up from the floor, pulling him away from Biggs's body much earlier than he would have liked. As they led him away, he could only look back at Biggs's body in shock.

* * *

Meanwhile, Isaaru and Beclem were talking as quietly as they could, trying not to be heard by their guards.

"You know," Beclem whispered as he watched as Wedge was forced away from his friend's body. "You could probably blame it all on me and get away with it; you being someone important. You could tell everyone that I cast an evil spell on you or something. I'm sure they're just hoping for a revelation like that so that they can get you out of this."

Isaaru merely chuckled at this suggestion. "You know that's not going to happen."

Isaaru was doing something with his hands as he spoke. Beclem frowned as he tried to work out what it was. By the confident grin on Isaaru's face, Beclem knew that it was going to be something that he might not like.

"I will not let you sacrifice yourself for my sake," Isaaru said with a smile.

Beclem felt something burning near his wrist, and gasped as he felt the handcuffs snap and fall from around his arm. Isaaru winked at him, and then suddenly pulled so swiftly that his own guards were surprised, and could not react in time to stop him.

Isaaru twirled around and knocked Beclem's guards to the floor.

"Run," Isaaru told his lover. "Worry about saving me later."

Beclem could only nod in response, before sprinting off from the guards as quickly as he could.

"After him!" one of the Yevonites screamed, just before Isaaru knocked him to the floor. The Yevonites were forced to pay more attention to Isaaru, who was now putting up quite a decent fight against most of them, almost completely forgetting about pursuing Beclem.

Beclem glanced behind him as he ran out of the stadium. A couple of the Yevonites were following him, but he turned a couple of corners too quickly for them to know which way he had gone.

He leapt over one of the crumbled walls and lay low for a moment, hoping that the Yevonites would not find him. The seconds passed slowly, but soon he realised that the men had no idea where he had gone. He began to crawl away from the area, making sure that he didn't disturb any of the pebbles, and that he made as little noise as physically possible.

He remembered the look Isaaru had given him before he had run; so full of hope and trust. He knew there was no way he would be able to leave Isaaru to die alone. The only question was; how could he possibly hope to save him?

He pulled the strip of fabric that had served as a mask several times before over his face and wondered if his face was anonymous enough that he could buy a ticket on a ship to Bevelle.

* * *

Isaaru struggled one last time, before he felt the cold press of anti-magic straps as they were fastened to his wrists, and two or three people held onto him, making sure that he couldn't struggle any more.

Two men wrestled with him until they each had a firm hold on one of his arms, and Isaaru was forced to finally admit defeat. He hung his head, partly in shame and partly in disappointment.

The sound of someone entering the stadium came to his ears, and he looked up once more, hoping that they hadn't brought Beclem back with them. The two men that had set after his lover had indeed returned, but Isaaru breathed a sigh of relief when he realised Beclem had escaped.

"That's enough from you," one of Isaaru's guards said. "You're not going to get a kind trial if you keep acting like that."

Isaaru could only smile. Beclem would come for him now. He was sure of it.


	17. Cloister Sixteen

**AN: **I've decided not to leave you with too much of a cliffhanger, so it is with a tear in my eye that I present to you the final real cloister. You'll find the epilogue also posted after this. Thank you to everyone who has reviewed or enjoyed this story.

**Warning:** You might need some tissues if you haven't already grabbed them for the cloister fifteen.

**Cloister Sixteen**

Isaaru looked up from his position in the middle of the Bevelle court. The space was dark, claustrophobic and designed to be as intimidating to the person on trial as possible.

Right now, it was working. If Isaaru felt anything, then it was intimidated. At the back of his mind was still the never fading hope that Beclem would somehow manage to turn up in Bevelle and help him escape, but that gradually began to disappear with every minute that passed.

Lucil and Elma had both been asked to serve as witnesses, on the basis that they were the two women that had assigned Beclem to his post in Bevelle in the first place. Wedge was also supposed to testify. At that moment however, the only other people in the room besides Isaaru were Dorian and a trio consisting of two high-ranking priests and one shy priestess.

"Where is Lord Baralai?" Isaaru asked as he cast his eyes over the faces that were present.

"On a diplomatic mission to the Machine Faction at Djose," Dorian answered, smiling quite confidently down at Isaaru. Isaaru frowned at this new side of Dorian which had emerged while he had been gone. It looked as though Dorian was power-hungry after all.

"We decided it was not worth waiting until Baralai returned to take care of a matter as small and inconsequential as this," Dorian continued. "I have been placed in charge while the Praetor is gone, so I will be the one to judge your fate. May I warn you before the proceedings begin that we have rather solid evidence of your involvement with Beclem, so there is very little chance that you will be able to get out of this without punishment. However…"

Dorian leaned over the top of the lectern he stood behind then and smiled once more at Isaaru.

"Having the news spread that someone in such an important position as yourself is a criminal can only damage the reputation of New Yevon. I will be as understanding as possible it if transpires that you were merely a victim of the evil trappings of the deviant Beclem. If you wish to be rid of this bad influence then all you need to do is tell us where Beclem is and we might be able to limit your sentence to imprisonment."

Isaaru considered Dorian's words for all of a second, before frowning.

"I do not know where Beclem is right now," Isaaru told the Yevonites.

"Well then," Dorian said. "Perhaps you can give us some suggestion as to…"

"And," Isaaru continued, ignoring Dorian as he kept talking, "even if I did know where he was, I would not tell you."

Dorian was silenced then, and he stared down at Isaaru with unreserved confusion and fury on his face.

"Beclem did not trick me, or lie to me, or whatever it is that you think he might have done," Isaaru said, glancing up at Dorian with defiance in his eyes. "And I will not tell you that he did to get myself out of trouble, because I love him."

The priestess gasped, and the two priests cast furious and shocked glances at him. Dorian frowned at Isaaru.

"I plead guilty to conducting a homosexual relationship with Beclem," Isaaru continued. "I love him; I made love to him, and I will not pretend that the greatest thing that has ever happened to me was no more than trickery and a series of heinous transgressions as you seem to think it is."

"If loving Beclem is a crime for which the punishment is death," Isaaru said, holding his head high despite the series of tears which had begun to run down his cheek. "Then I will die for it."

Dorian looked down his nose at Isaaru and nodded.

"Fine then," he said. "If that is the way this is going to be, then you, Isaaru, are convicted of being involved in acts of sodomy and being part of a deviant and dangerous relationship of an unnatural form. The punishment for this crime is death. We will advise you of the time of your death when it has been scheduled."

* * *

"You know Lord Isaaru," Dorian said as he paced in front of Isaaru's cell more than two hours after Isaaru's short trial. "I am quite surprised by your behaviour. I had you figured as a moral individual. More than that, I didn't realise you were the type to throw away such a position as yours for something so trivial."

"This is not trivial," Isaaru whispered.

Isaaru knew he must have looked a far cry from the great leader he had once been. Once he stood on grand balconies, head held high as he looked down on a city. Now, he was huddled up in the corner of a tiny prison cell, his head resting on his knees as he curled up in a ball with his hands around his legs. He wished that Beclem was there with him. He would have given anything to just hold his lover one more time.

Yet, despite his despair and loneliness, and the man that stood in front of his cell, apparently enjoying putting Isaaru through emotional and mental torture, he couldn't help but feel as though his position this time was so much more right than that of a leader. Somehow, this was the purpose he had been looking for his whole life. That gave him hope, and the resolve to ignore the harsh words of the man in front of him.

"I'm actually quite glad you've ended up in this state to tell you the truth," Dorian added with a confident smirk. "After all, with you in prison, and Lord Baralai off on diplomatic duties with the Machine Faction, it leaves me in charge of Bevelle. Thank you Lord Isaaru for this great opportunity."

Isaaru scowled at the man's sarcastically gracious manner.

"I am curious to know," Dorian commented, leaning against the bars of Isaaru's cage in an effort to annoy the ex-Summoner, "why in Sin's name did you do it? Was the sex that good, or was it merely the thrill of doing something highly illegal and the possibility of getting away with it?"

Isaaru scowled and jumped to his feet at that comment.

"I love Beclem," he growled. "Make no mistake about that. And he loves me. That's why. We love one another enough to risk everything."

"Love," Dorian laughed. "You call this hopeless scandal love. If this love of yours is so great, then why isn't dear Beclem sitting in this cell beside you?"

Isaaru sat back down with that comment, trying hard not to let Dorian's cruel words get to him.

"He is going to try and rescue me. You'll see," Isaaru said, trying to keep the conviction in his voice. "He _will_ save me."

"I would like to see him try," Dorian sneered.

* * *

Beclem quickly glanced around the Palace, checking to make sure that no-one was in the area. It was clear enough, and he crossed into the next space, holding the strip of fabric over his mouth as he did so.

He sprinted over to the next building, lifting himself up onto the roof and sprinting over it, leaping from roof to roof over the next hundred metres, until he came to a gap that he could not make in one leap.

He peered over the edge of the roof at the ground below, making sure that the street was empty. He couldn't see anyone, and so dropped down, landing on the dusty ground beneath with almost no noise.

He scurried over into the shadows on the other side of the road, but was soon stopped by the cold metal of a rifle pressed against his forehead.

"What do you think you're doing here?" the other person that had been hiding in the shadows asked him. "You don't honestly think you're going to be able to break Isaaru out of prison, do you?"

The gun was lowered from Beclem's forehead, and Beclem turned around to see that the person that had spotted him was none other than Wedge. He frowned as he realised his chances of survival. Wedge did not seem like the sort of person to let him walk free.

"I made it this far," Beclem growled, drawing his own pistol from his waist. "I will not hesitate to kill you if it means making it the whole way."

"I'm not going to stop you," Wedge said, to Beclem's surprise. "Biggs would have wanted me to let you go."

Beclem realised that Wedge's hands began to shake when he mentioned his now departed friend, and a strange look passed over his face for a second.

"He would have wanted me to help you," Wedge insisted. "So… I mean, I can't actually help you break him out, but I'm not going to arrest you, and… They've got Isaaru in a maximum security cell. There's no way you will be able to break him out of there. Any rescue attempt you could possibly make would just end up with you dying along with him."

Beclem sighed and nodded. He took a deep breath and gazed up at the Palace, one loan tear making its way down his cheek.

"Thank you," he told Wedge. "Are you going to be all right?" he asked the guard, who was still shaking slightly.

"I'm not sure," Wedge answered truthfully. "I'm not sure of anything anymore now that he's gone, but…" He put on a brave smile then. "I'll do my best."

Beclem nodded and jumped onto the next roof, smiling at Wedge one he had reached the safety of that height.

"That's all we can do," Beclem told the guard, before he disappeared onto the skyline of Bevelle.

* * *

One thousand miles away, in the safety of one of the wings of the Machine Faction's base, Djose Temple, two old friends were meeting for what was supposed to be a rather politically important meeting, but which had, over the past couple of hours, dissolved into a casual and friendly discussion.

"This could make things difficult for us," Gippal commented as he drummed his fingers on the table. "I mean, the Al Bhed are naturally going to support these two, but you never know what could happen. It could lead to another fight between the factions."

Gippal had once been incredibly attractive. Now, with one eye covered with a black patch, and more scars covering body than the usual soldier, most people would say that he had lost some of his charm, but Baralai had always found that the rugged, slightly damaged look suited the blonde Al Bhed.

"I know," Baralai answered, leaning his head on the arm he had rested on the table. "Just imagine what it would be like if it was us though."

"All right," Gippal laughed. "I get the message. You know I'm gonna be on your side about this no matter what you say, anyway?"

"Yes," Baralai answered. "I know. It would be nice to have your official standing on the matter though, and I'm glad I do. I just hope we can buy Beclem and Isaaru enough time."

At that moment, a Yevonite entered the tent, a rather excited look on his face.

"Lord Baralai!" he called. "We just received news that they've convicted that deviant Isaaru. They're going to execute him tomorrow."

"What do you mean they've convicted him?" Baralai demanded of his subordinate.

"Lord Dorian captured Isaaru a couple of days ago in Luca," the Yevonite explained. "They tried him earlier this afternoon, and he pleaded guilty. He'll face the firing squad tomorrow at noon."

Baralai paled at this news. He looked down at the table to see Gippal staring at him, shock clear on his face as well.

"I have to go," Baralai told his old friend. "If I catch a ship bound for Bevelle then I might be able to get there before anything happens. I'm sorry that I couldn't stay longer."

Gippal sighed and shook his head.

"It doesn't matter," he told his old friend. "You're welcome to come by and visit any time you want. You know that right?"

"Thank you," Baralai said, smiling warmly at the Al Bhed.

"Good luck getting back there on time Baralai," Gippal added as the Yevonite exited the tent. "You're going to need it."

* * *

Isaaru's execution had been scheduled to take place exactly at sunrise. Once, the death penalty in the name of Yevon had merely involved throwing criminals into the depths of the fiend-invested chamber known as Via Purifico. Lady Yuna and her guardians had proved how unreliable this method was; slaughtering many of Via Purifico's most dangerous inhabitants in the process, and now the preferred method of execution was by firing squad.

Isaaru cast an eye over the opening that would, in theory, be the last place he ever drew breath in. All in all, it wasn't too bad a place to die. The ground was covered in a grey stone, which was bathed in a blood red light brought on by the sun's first rays kissing the earth.

His executioners were already gathered in a circle around the centre of the space. The firing squad seemed to consist of almost everyone that was in the upper reaches of Bevelle at that moment that owned a gun. There was Lucil and Elma; the darker of the two women looking very nervous about the situation. Wedge was also there, although he was gazing blankly at the sunrise; his mind clearly not on the execution. The rest of the firing squad consisted mainly of the remnants of Maroda's guard; the few lucky men that had not been sent to Luca.

Dorian; or Lord Dorian as he was being called by most of the Yevonites now that Baralai was away, stood behind Lucil and Elma, smiling confidently at Isaaru as he was led into the area.

"He'll be here," Isaaru growled at Dorian as they passed him. "You won't be smiling so widely then!"

"I feel sorry for you Lord Isaaru," Dorian said as Isaaru was forcefully led to the centre of the circle, making sure to place plenty of emphasis on the ex-Summoner's old title.

"You are still suffering from the tragic delusion that Beclem actually cares about you, and when you die, the last sad thought that passes through your brain will be the realisation that you were wrong, and your trust and emotion were invested in a worthless cause, because Beclem will not turn up to rescue you. The last realisation to pass through your mind will be that Beclem does not care about you enough to even be here when you die."

Isaaru stared defiantly at Dorian for a few more moments, but the man's confident grin did not falter, and Isaaru turned to stare hopefully at the horizon, waiting for his lover to appear.

Isaaru was led to a stone pillar in the centre of the circle, and he was tied onto it firmly so that he could not move his hands or arms. Isaaru sighed and hung his head, waiting for the gunshots to hit his body and end his life.

There was still hope though. It refused to leave him alone, and he couldn't help but keep glancing around him, looking for Beclem to turn up at the last moment.

"Ready!" Dorian commanded. The circle of gunners picked their guns up, a few of them double-checking that their ammunition was ready.

"Aim!" Dorian continued. The line of guns pointed directly at Isaaru. Elma now looked close to tears, and Wedge's hands were shaking as he held the rifle.

Dorian was just about to give the final order to fire, when someone yelled out, several people pointed, and nearly everyone turned around to stare at the back of the Palace.

Isaaru opened his eyes slowly, not willing to completely give into hope, but when he looked onto the Palace roof, he couldn't help but smile.

A figure stood on top of the Palace, silhouetted by the rising sun behind him. Isaaru blinked away the glare from the sun, and could just make out Beclem's cocky smirk from that distance.

Several members of the firing squad gasped in amazement. Wedge smiled at the other man, glad that Beclem was at least going to attempt to save Isaaru, despite his own warning to the man. For a moment, the guard wished that Biggs was alive to see this. Biggs would have loved it.

Dorian merely scowled at the silhouette, annoyed that the ex-Crusader had proved him wrong. Beclem didn't even notice the gesture however. At that moment, he only had eyes for Isaaru.

Beclem smiled warmly at his lover, before jumping up into the air, flipping as he did so that he could take several shots at the firing squad beneath them. They were perfectly aimed, and several people dropped to the ground with wounded legs. Lucil's rifle was shot from her hands, and clattered onto the dusty ground.

Beclem landed no more than a foot away from Isaaru, and shot at the ropes around Isaaru's wrists, before yanking the now broken bonds away from his lover's arms. He grabbed Isaaru's hand in his own, and began running towards the exit.

Beclem fired another couple of shots at the circle of people around them, none of which were returned. The firing squad seemed far too shocked by Beclem's show of bravery and marksmanship to do anything.

Wedge's grip on his gun had lessened, and the weapon fell to the ground as he stared at the couple, amazed that Beclem had made such a daring move to rescue his lover. It was inevitable though; there were too many people on the firing squad. There was no way that Beclem would be able to escape with his lover.

Soon, Beclem's gun clicked uselessly as he ran out of bullets. Those guards and Yevonites that had lost their weapons picked them back up and aimed them at the two men once more, but not one of them could find the will to fire their weapons.

The Yevonites advanced towards Beclem and Isaaru, forcing them to move back towards the stone pillar in the centre of the circle, and still not one single shot had been fired.

Beclem and Isaaru's hands slowly reached out for one another, and they smiled at one another as their fingers joined with each other.

"That did not go as well as I think you might have planned it," Isaaru said, trying to sound at least a little disappointed, despite the fact that he now couldn't stop smiling. "It does not look like we will be able to escape from this."

"I know," Beclem said, looking Isaaru in the eyes and squeezing his hand gently. "But at least you're not going to die alone."

Isaaru felt tears building up in the back of his eyes at Beclem's statement, and he reached out with both his arms, pulling Beclem into a tight embrace which the other man returned enthusiastically, neither of them caring about the firing squad that was now watching them with shock.

Several of the firing squad smiled at this action, all thoughts of killing the two men now completely forgotten, Elma and Wedge amongst them. A strange warmth spread throughout Wedge as he watched. Never in his life had he seen anything which made him feel so complete. There was something so perfect and inspiring about Beclem and Isaaru's simple act which made it one hundred times more rebellious and potentially dangerous than their survival would have been.

"What's wrong with you people!" Dorian screamed. "Fire! Fire!"

He was completely ignored.

* * *

Baralai ran through the streets of Bevelle, panting as he did. He had been fortunate to have caught a lift on a rather fast ship headed for Bevelle and was getting closer to the Palace now, but he wondered if he would be in time. The sun had already started spreading its light over the city.

A few shots sounded, echoing over the city. Baralai stopped in his tracks for a moment, but the sounds of scuffling continued, signalling that Isaaru had not yet been killed. He breathed a sigh of relief, and continued to run towards the back of the Palace, where he knew Isaaru was now facing his fate.

* * *

"I said fire!" Dorian screamed.

Everyone in the circle had their weapons pointed at Beclem and Isaaru, apart from Wedge and Elma, but no-one could find the will needed to pull the trigger and disturb the scene in front of them.

Beclem and Isaaru slowly pulled back from one another, but only by enough to look in one another's eyes. One solitary tear made its way down Beclem's cheek, before Isaaru pulled his lover close in a passionate kiss.

Beclem had heard the myth that your life flashed before your eyes before you died, and found this to be at least partially true right now. All he could think of was the events of the past six months; the first time he had ever seen Isaaru; the time Isaaru had been kind enough to offer him one dance; their first kiss. Every moment he had spent with the ex-Summoner flashed in the darkness of his mind as he clung to Isaaru.

"You idiots!" Dorian yelled at the circle of gunmen as he swiftly leaned over and grabbed Elma's gun from her hands.

"Shoot!" he commanded, firing one bullet directly at the two lovers. This seemed to snap the other members of the firing squad out of the shock Beclem and Isaaru's actions had plunged them into.

No-one heard Baralai's scream of protest above the roar of gunfire.

A swarm of bullets flew at Beclem and Isaaru, piercing their bodies in a hundred places. They fell to the ground together, the force of the bullets breaking their kiss. They lay together on the stone floor, one of Isaaru's arms flung in a half embrace over Beclem's side.

The bullets eventually stopped, and Isaaru and Beclem were left in the centre of the clearing, surrounded by a small pool of their own blood, mingling so that no-one would be able to tell where one person's life began and the other ended.

Wedge stared in shock at the two bodies in front of him, a scowl beginning to form on his face. His heart had skipped a beat when Isaaru and Beclem had brought their lips together, but now he wasn't sure if he could feel it beating at all. He was the only person in the circle that hadn't fired a single shot at the two men and knew he wouldn't have been able to even if his own life was on the line, and now these people had disturbed something so precious, so pure…

How could they destroy something so beautiful?

Wedge's hand tightened around the barrel of his gun, and he finally brought it up to aim at the person that had been responsible for Beclem and Isaaru's death.

Dorian barely had time to scream as three of Wedge's bullets slammed into his chest in quick succession.

The clearing was soon plunged into chaos. Baralai tried to get everyone into some sort of order, but between Wedge's screams, the people who were either trying to subdue or arrest the guard, and those that were still too stunned or shocked by Beclem and Isaaru's death to do anything, it would be a long while before these people felt anything near normal again.

When everything had eventually settled down, before anyone left the area, they couldn't help but cast a wistful glance back at the two bodies left in the centre of the cold stone floor.

In death, Beclem and Isaaru smiled warmly at one another.


	18. Cloister Infinity

**Cloister Infinity**

Whether the two men had intended for it to happen or not, their deaths changed the hearts and minds of many people. Their defeat of Chappu, while being acknowledged as the heroic deed that it was, was almost forgotten in favour of their impact on the laws of New Yevon.

Many people campaigned for Beclem and Isaaru to be given a proper burial, Baralai included, and within a couple of days they were buried at the rear of the Bevelle palace, grand tombstones making the place where they had died and now lay in peace together.

New Yevon was forced to change many of its laws. Within a few weeks, falling in love with a member of the same sex no longer carried a death sentence. After a few more months of campaigning from the Al Bhed, Guado, and certain factions of New Yevon led by Baralai, it was no longer viewed as a crime at all.

Of course, the prejudice could not be erased all together, and while many people could now express their love without fear of death, there was still that ever present prejudice and hatred from some parts of the population that meant that there was still fear. Elma never told Lucil how she felt, and kept her feelings a secret until the day she died.

Wedge was imprisoned for the death of Dorian. The penalty for a New Yevon official's murder would usually be death, but since Dorian had apparently gone against the true leader of New Yevon, Baralai's, wishes, he was granted some clemency. After many years in prison, Wedge was released as a free man. Whether it was because of Biggs or not was never known, but Wedge lived alone for the rest of his life.

After many years, those that had been granted the freedom to love by Beclem and Isaaru raised a statue to them in Luca once the city had been rebuilt. Every day young lovers came to Luca to pay their respects.

The entrance to Via Infinito was closed off by New Yevon, so that no other great fiends could escape from its depths.

And in the deepest depths of Via Infinito, in the Cloisters that no-one would ever venture into again, two souls resided happily together for the rest of eternity, never to be disturbed or parted again.


End file.
